India, Jan. 3 -- Chris Cairns, known as the finest all-rounder of his generation, revealed that he was "extremely" close to dying after his battle with a series of illnesses. The former New Zealand player is currently bound to a wheelchair after suffering a spinal stroke, which left him paralysed waist down. It is worth mentioning that the 55-year-old suffered an aortic dissection in August 2021, and this led to his being transferred to a specialist hospital in Sydney. Cairns then underwent a life-saving emergency heart surgery. However, this was not the end of the worries, as he then suffered more complications.

For those unaware, aortic dissection is a very serious medical condition in which a tear occurs in the inner layer of the body...