Gunathilaka avoids ban, directed to “mandatory counselling” over alleged brawl

Thursday, 29 April 2021 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

Sri Lankan cricketer Danushka Gunathilaka has avoided being sanctioned by Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) over his role in an alleged brawl at a hotel in Matara recently but has been directed to attend “mandatory counselling sessions” for a period

Danushka Gunathilaka

of one year after an inquiry panel deemed his conduct “unprofessional”.

“The three-member Inquiry Panel headed by an independent attorney-at-law has found the player’s conduct with regard to the alleged incident to be unprofessional and lacking the required level of integrity expected of a national player,” read an SLC media release.

“Therefore, based on the findings and recommendations made by the panel, the Management Committee of SLC warned the player not to engage in any conduct which violates the standards of honesty, morality, fair play, and sportsmanship, [as doing so would bring] disrepute to Sri Lanka Cricket.”

Daily FT had previously revealed that it was Gunathilaka who had initially requested SLC inquire into the allegations. However, according to his lawyer, as no substantive action was taken by SLC, Gunathilaka had requested SLC in writing to take appropriate action to mitigate the continuous damage being caused to his reputation by what he labelled frivolous and unfounded allegations.

This is not Gunathilaka’s first brush with disciplinary issues. In 2018, he was handed a one-year ban by SLC for breaching the 'Player Code of Conduct' during a tour of South Africa. Earlier that year, he was also officially reprimanded for breaching Level 1 of the ICC Code of Conduct during the final of the T20 tri-series against Bangladesh, after he had given Tamim Iqbal a send-off when the batsman was on his way to the dressing room. In 2017, he was suspended for six limited overs games (later revised to three games) – again for misconduct – after string of training-related indiscretions.

The latest blotch on Gunathilaka’s disciplinary record is likely to displease both the player and coaching staff, as he had just hit upon a rich vein of form, scoring three fifties in six limited overs games against the West Indies earlier this year while top-scoring in the Lanka Premier League at the tail-end of last year.