5 May 2021

Arrests made over kidnapping of former Aussie leg spinner

1:24 pm on 5 May 2021

Four men have been arrested after allegedly kidnapping former Australian Test cricketer Stuart MacGill at gunpoint in Sydney last month.

MacGill, 50, was taken to a west Sydney property and allegedly assaulted and threatened with a weapon but then released about an hour later.

Four men, aged 27, 29, 42 and 46, were arrested this morning and police say charges are expected to be laid.

MacGill played 44 Tests for Australia between 1998 and 2008.

Stuart MacGill

Stuart MacGill Photo: Photosport

He was widely regarded as the world's second-best leg-spinner at the time, but his career largely played out in Shane Warne's shadow and his opportunities at international level were limited.

In 2015 MacGill sued Cricket Australia for $2.6 million for failing to pay him injury payments after his retirement in 2008.

Two years later MacGill and Cricket Australia reached a confidential settlement and avoided going to court.

MacGill, who also studied wine marketing, has appeared on numerous cooking shows since retiring from cricket and manages a restaurant on Sydney's North Shore.

-ABC