Former Nepal captain Sandeep Lamichhane's rape conviction has been reversed by the Patan High Court on May 15. Lamichhane has been proved innocent and cleared of all charges.
The leg-spinner was sentenced to eight years of imprisonment after he was found guilty of raping an 18-year-old in 2022. He was out on provisional release after the appeal to Nepal’s highest court.
Fans gathered outside the court to celebrate the decision. The riot police guarded the road to prevent fans from entering the court premises.
The 23-year-old is not liable to pay the half a million rupee fine. Nepal’s highest wicket-taker in limited-overs format is now available for selection for the T20 World Cup 2024 squad. Nepal have already announced their squad but changes can be made till May 25 without the International Cricket Council’s (ICC) approval.
Nepal are placed in Group D alongside Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Netherlands and South Africa. They will kick off their campaign against the Dutch on June 4.
Nepal's squad for T20 World Cup 2024
Rohit Paudel (c), Aasif Sheikh, Anil Kumar Sah, Kushal Bhurtel, Kushal Malla, Dipendra Singh Airee, Lalit Rajbanshi, Karan KC, Gulshan Jha, Sompal Kami, Pratis GC, Sundeep Jora, Abinash Bohara, Sagar Dhakal, Kamal Singh Airee
Lamichhane's impressive numbers
Lamichhane has 98 wickets from 52 games including one fifer and two four-fers. He has an outstanding economy rate of 6.29 runs per over. The leggie has got experience of playing in T20 leagues around the world. He represented Delhi Capitals (DC) in the Indian Premier League (IPL) as well. He played in two seasons and bagged 13 wickets from nine IPL games.
Lamichhane's last appearance
His last appearance in a T20I game was in November 2023. He bagged a couple of wickets. The match was won by Nepal in super over. The youngster's last appearance in professional cricket was in a T20 game. For PARSA Club, he took three wickets for 13 runs against Army Club on December 29, 2023. He did not play professional cricket in 2024.
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