Ex-Black Caps cricketer Cairns in intensive care

Former New Zealand allrounder Chris Cairns is in an intensive care unit at a Sydney hospital after being moved from Canberra for urgent treatment of a serious health event.

St Vincent's Hospital in Sydney said Cairns had been admitted on Tuesday.

"He is in a serious but stable condition in intensive care," a spokesperson said.

Cairns' family confirmed reports the 51-year-old Cairns had recently suffered an aortic dissection, a tear in the body's main artery, during a heart incident in Canberra.

"Chris suffered a major medical even in Canberra late last week. He initially underwent surgery in Canberra, but the seriousness of his condition is such that he has now been transferred to St Vincent's hospital in Sydney, where he has undergone further cardiovascular surgery," a statement from his wife Melanie read.

"Chris' family and friends are heartened by the respectful and warm manner in which this terrible news has been reported and received by the public, both in New Zealand and around the world, and thanks everyone for their warm wishes, prayers and kind words."

Reports said the former cricketer had not responded to treatment as hoped, and the Cairns family asked for privacy "as they deal with this difficult, upsetting and concerning situation".

Regarded one of the best allrounders of his era, Cairns played 62 Tests, 215 one-day internationals and two Twenty20 matches for New Zealand between 1989-2006.

His father Lance also represented New Zealand in cricket.

The news has rocked New Zealand, where former teammates expressed sympathy for his family.

"It's absolutely devastating. It's the worst news you could possibly get," former New Zealand teammate Chris Harris told local media.

Cairns has lived in Canberra for several years with his children after his marriage to Australian Melanie Croser in 2010.

After retiring from international cricket, Cairns was the subject of allegations of match-fixing in India as captain of the Chandigarh Lions in the defunct Indian Cricket League (ICL) in 2008.

He denied any wrongdoing and fought several legal battles to clear his name, winning a libel case against former Indian Premier League chairman Lalit Modi in 2012.

He spent time cleaning bus shelters employed by Auckland City Council in 2014 as legal troubles engulfed him, and in 2015, he was cleared of perjury in relation to the libel case after being charged by Britain's Crown Prosecution Service.

That trial heard testimony from former New Zealand captain Brendon McCullum, as well as Daniel Vettori and Ricky Ponting.

McCullum said the cricket community was suffering along with Cairns' family.

"It's a difficult subject to obviously talk about. We haven't seen each other for quite a long time," McCullum, a host on New Zealand radio station SENZ, said.

"Our relationship is unimportant in the whole thing, the fact is that Chris is a father and also a son to Lance and (mother) Sue.

"Today my family and myself are thinking of those people who are suffering."