Nepali cricket star Sandeep Lamichhane was on Friday convicted of rape after a repeatedly delayed trial that had left him free to continue his sporting career.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Lamichhane, 23, was once the poster boy for the rise of cricket in Nepal and the leg spinner's onfield success had boosted the sport's profile in the Himalayan republic.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Last year he was accused of raping a 17-year-old girl in a Kathmandu hotel but was freed on bail in January and returned to the squad to compete in international tournaments.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
His lawyer Saroj Ghimire told AFP that a court had convicted Lamichhane on Friday.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
"His sentence will be decided in the next hearing," he added.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
District court official Ramu Sharma confirmed the verdict to AFP.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
"The event was not consensual," he said.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
When authorities issued an arrest warrant Lamichhane initially failed to return from Jamaica, where he was playing in the Caribbean Premier League.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
He was dismissed as national captain and arrested last year but Nepal lifted his playing ban after he was freed on bail.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
This allowed him to remain in the national team, including for the World Cup qualifiers and September's Asia Cup.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Lamichhane has consistently denied the charge against him and enjoyed strong public support despite the accusations.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
"You are hero of Nepali cricket team be strong we can understand your problem take care of your self," one fan wrote on his official Facebook page in October.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Hundreds of cheering cricket fans welcomed him when he first returned to the field in February.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
But his continued playing career has also sparked anger and caused numerous Nepalis to disavow the team.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Scotland's cricketers refused to shake hands with him after their matches during an international tournament in Dubai.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
The case against Lamichhane took more than a year to conclude after repeated delays on procedural grounds.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Cricket does not enjoy the same adulation in mountainous Nepal as it does elsewhere in South Asia.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
But it has been growing in popularity, with Nepal given one-day international status by the world governing body in 2018.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Lamichhane has been a major part of this rise as the most sought-after Nepali cricketer in lucrative leagues around the world.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
The leg spinner's big break came when he was snapped up for the lucrative Indian Premier League, the world's richest cricket tournament, in 2018.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
About 2,300 rape cases were reported in Nepal in the 2021-22 fiscal year, according to police, but rights workers say many more assaults go unreported.<\/p>\r\n\r\n