Chris Cairns, the former New Zealand cricketer, suffered a stroke during surgery and may have lost the use of his legs.
Earlier in August, 51-year-old Cairns suffered a heart attack at his home in Canberra, Australia. While undergoing emergency heart surgery in a Sydney hospital, he suffered a spinal stroke, leading to his losing the use of his legs.
Media reports indicate that Cairns will undergo rehabilitation at a specialist spinal hospital in Australia.
Cairns is widely regarded as one of New Zealand’s greatest cricketers, playing for the country between 1989 and 2006. He played 62 Tests, 215 ODIs, and two T20Is for his country. In Tests, he scored over 3 000 runs for New Zealand at an average of 33.5 and took 218 wickets, averaging 29. In ODIs he scored nearly 5 000 runs, averaging just shy of 30, with 201 wickets at an average of 32.8.
His father, Lance, also had a successful international career playing for New Zealand.
[Image: Keith Page, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=5121292]