Australian Cricket Legend Shane Warne Dies at Age 52
Mar 4, 2022
MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA - DECEMBER 26: Former Australian cricketer and FOX Sports commentator Shane Warne is seen during day one of the Third Test match in the Ashes series between Australia and England at Melbourne Cricket Ground on December 26, 2021 in Melbourne, Australia. (Photo by Quinn Rooney/Getty Images)
Former Australian cricket player Shane Warne, considered one of the best in the history of the sport, has died at the age of 52 because of a suspected heart attack, per Andrew Miller of ESPN.
Warne was in Thailand at the time of his death.
"Shane was found unresponsive in his villa, and despite the best efforts of medical staff, he could not be revived," Warne's management said in a statement to Jacob Polychronis of Fox News.
Warne helped Australia win the World Cup in 1999 and starred for the national team from 1992 to 2007. In 2000, he was one of five competitors named to Wisden's Cricketers of the Century list.
He finished his career with 708 wickets in Test matches, second-most in history behind Muttiah Muralitharan.
He retired from the sport in 2013 before spending time in broadcasting.
Warne's shocking death led to tributes from his native Australia and around the world:
The greatest to ever do it 🐐
No one played the game like Shane Warne and no one will ever come close.
— Cricket on TNT Sports (@cricketontnt) March 4, 2022
World Cup winner, Ashes winner, Indian Premier League winner, 708 wickets in Test & 293 wickets in One Day Internationals. Australia cricket legend, @ShaneWarne, has passed away of suspected heart attack, aged 52. Rest In Peace, Spin King 🏏 pic.twitter.com/Teh83f7DG8
— Australian Embassy, USA 🇦🇺🇺🇸 (@AusintheUS) March 4, 2022
The news comes less than a day after the death of fellow Australian cricket star Rod Marsh. Warne offered a tribute on social media to Marsh, saying he was a "legend of our great game & an inspiration to so many young boys & girls."
Former Australian Cricketer Stuart MacGill Allegedly Kidnapped at Gunpoint
May 5, 2021
England captain Joe Root (R) chats with former Australian spinner Stuart MacGill (L) during training at the SCG in Sydney on January 3, 2018, a day ahead of the start of the fifth Ashes cricket Test match against Australia. / AFP PHOTO / WILLIAM WEST / --IMAGE RESTRICTED TO EDITORIAL USE - STRICTLY NO COMMERCIAL USE-- (Photo credit should read WILLIAM WEST/AFP via Getty Images)
Australian cricketer Stuart MacGill was the victim of a kidnapping, according to Fergus Hunter and Laura Chung of the Sydney Morning Herald.
Hunter and Chung reported four men were arrested. Among those facing charges is Marino Sotiropoulos, who's the brother of MacGill's partner, Maria O’Meagher.
On April 14, Sotiropoulos and two others allegedly confronted MacGill and forced him to enter a vehicle.
"He was allegedly driven to a property at Bringelly, more than 60 kilometres away in the city’s south-west, where three men assaulted him and threatened him with a firearm," Hunter and Chung wrote.
MacGill allegedly was then driven to another location 40 kilometers away and released.
Australian authorities said the crime appears to have been financially motivated and that MacGill was initially concerned about reporting the kidnapping to police, per the BBC.
"To be standing on a street, to be dragged into a car, driven a remote location, physically assaulted, threatened with a firearm, held for a period of time and then dumped, I think you would be pretty worried," detective Anthony Holton said. "I know it is only an hour that he was held, but it would have been a horribly frightful hour to endure through."
MacGill only suffered minor injuries and didn't require additional medical care.
The 50-year-old retired from competitive cricket in 2008, having appeared in 44 Test matches for Australia over his career. He also agreed to a confidential settlement with Cricket Australia in 2017 after filing a AU$2.6 million lawsuit over injury payments he said he didn't receive.
He now serves as a general manager for a Sydney-area restaurant.
