Sri Lanka batsman Danushka Gunathilaka’s suspension is related to an alleged sexual assault that occurred in his presence, according to reports. The alleged incident took place in the team hotel on Sunday (July 22) and the cricketer was suspended from all forms of cricket by Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) later the same day.

Gunathilaka, and his friend, a 26-year-old British passport holder of Sri Lankan origin, had taken two Norwegian women in the hotel. One of those women later accused Gunathilaka’s acquaintance of raping her.

The British citizen “is under arrest and we are continuing our investigations,” a police official said. “A Norwegian tourist made the complaint of rape.”

Although Gunathilaka has been cleared of any wrongdoing by the official, he has been suspended for breaching SLC’s Player Code of Conduct. His suspension came into effect immediately after the conclusion of the second Test between Sri Lanka and South Africa, which Sri Lanka have won by 199 runs.

SLC will be conducting an investigation into this matter. The country’s governing body of the game has also withheld Gunathilaka’s fee for the second Test until the outcome of the investigation is known.

This is the second time in the last ten months that the 27-year-old has been on the receiving end of a disciplinary action. His reluctance towards the training sessions during Sri Lanka’s tour of India had later forced the batsman out of the ODI squad that faced Pakistan in the UAE, in 2017.