Former Nepal cricket team captain Sandeep Lamichhane has been given a clean chit by the Patan High Court. The leg-spinner had been handed an 8-year sentence by the Kathmandu District Court earlier in the year after an underage girl claimed that the star cricketer had sexually assaulted her.
Sandeep Lamichhane goes scot-free
After deliberation on Tuesday and Wednesday (May 14 and 15), the court overturned the past verdict on the former Delhi Capitals player. High court judges Sudarshan Dev Bhatta and Anju Upetri cleared Lamichhane of all charges.
After being handed an 8-year sentence in January, Lamichhane was granted bail in February and appealed his conviction. “We have filed an appeal against the court’s decision,” his lawyer told AFP.
The leg-spinner had a case filed against him in 2022, and he was removed as the Nepal cricket team captain. He was also banned by the Cricket Association of Nepal (CAN), but it was later overturned. He was also unable to participate in the ODI World Cup 2023 qualifiers or the Asia Cup 2023.
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T20 World Cup calling Sandeep Lamichhane?
Now that he’s been cleared by the court, it means that Lamichhane is also available for selection. With May 25 being the deadline for the final squad announcement for the T20 World Cup 2024, the leg spinner might find himself in the 15-man team. Being Nepal’s highest wicket-taker in T20Is, it won’t be far-fetched to say he’ll probably storm into the main XI as well and be one of the first names on the sheet against the Netherlands on June 4.
Nepal’s T20 World Cup 2024 squad
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
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