Stuart MacGill: Former Australia cricketer kidnapped at gunpoint in Sydney

Giovanni Torre
·2 min read
Stuart MacGill playing for Australia in Hobart in 2007 - GETTY IMAGES
Stuart MacGill playing for Australia in Hobart in 2007 - GETTY IMAGES
  • Oops!
    Something went wrong.
    Please try again later.

Former Australian cricketer Stuart MacGill was allegedly kidnapped at gunpoint, threatened and assaulted in April, it was revealed on Wednesday, as New South Wales police arrested four men suspected of the attack.

Police allege that on April 14 at about 8pm MacGill was approached by a man in Sydney's affluent Lower North Shore before two other men appeared and allegedly forced him into a car.

MacGill was then allegedly driven to a property in Bringelly, on the outskirts of Sydney, where he was allegedly assaulted and threatened with a firearm before being released about an hour later in Belmore, almost 40km away.

Local media reported that MacGill's kidnappers had been seeking a ransom.

On Wednesday morning New South Wales police arrested four men, aged 27, 29, 42 and 46, in a pre-dawn raid and announced that charges are expected to be laid.

The police then executed search warrants for homes across the city, in Sutherland, Caringbah, Brighton Le-Sands, Banksia and Marrickville.

MacGill, who played 44 Tests for Australia between 1998 and 2008, was a talented spinner but had the misfortune of playing at the same time as Shane Warne, widely considered the best leg-spin bowler in history.

MacGill with Joe Root in 2018 during a stint coaching England's spinners - GETTY IMAGES
MacGill with Joe Root in 2018 during a stint coaching England's spinners - GETTY IMAGES

MacGill also coached England's spin bowlers in the winter of 2018.

In 2004 he was the only Australian cricketer to declare himself unavailable to tour Zimbabwe as an expression of his concerns about the policies and actions of the Mugabe government. MacGill also refused to appear in an advertisement for Cricket Australia sponsor KFC, saying it put undue pressure on parents to buy fast food for their children.

He retired from international cricket in 2008 due to injuries. Seven years later he sued Cricket Australia for A$2.6 million (about £1.5 million) for failing to pay him injury payments after his retirement. In 2017 he and Cricket Australia reached a confidential settlement and avoided going to court.

MacGill, who also studied wine marketing, has appeared on numerous cooking shows and is currently the general manager at a restaurant in Neutral Bay.