England cricket legend Sir Ian Botham falls into crocodile-infested waters and is rescued by former rival Merv Hughes

England cricket legend Sir Ian Botham was rescued by a former rival from Australia after he fell from a boat into water ‘infested’ with sharks and crocodiles.

The retired all-rounder was fishing with former Australian fast bowler Merv Hughes when his flip flops caught on a rope and plunged headfirst into the Moyle River near Darwin. northern Australia.

Sir Ian, nicknamed Beefywas badly bruised after hitting a boat on the descent, but escaped a worse fate when Hughes and other fishermen quickly pulled him out.

The 68-year-old wrote on Instagram on Friday: “My catch of the day was a barra (fish) when I almost had the catch of the day for all the crocodiles and bull sharks…

“Thanks guys for getting me out.”

According to local media, the river is teeming with crocodiles, and the family bull sharks was also seen hiding under the boat when Sir Ian fell.

Referring to the film Crocodile Dundee, he This was reported by the Australian newspaper Herald Sun: “At the end of the day, Beefy the Crocodile survived.

“I got out of the water faster than I got in it. Many eyes were looking at me. Fortunately, I didn’t have time to think about what was in the water.”

The cricket The commentator added: “The lads were brilliant, it was just one of those crashes. It was all very quick and now I’m fine.”

Sir Ian, who was knighted in 2020, was Hughes’ on-field rival during England-Australia clashes in the 1980s, but the pair became good friends after their playing careers ended.

The duo were reportedly on a four-day boat trip to catch barramundi when the incident happened last week.

Sir Ian is said to have become entangled in the rope while he and his companions were transferring from a small boat to another vessel.

He is reportedly in Australia to commentate alongside Hughes for a series of upcoming matches, including the first Test between Australia and India.

He is considered one of England’s greatest cricketerstaking 5,200 Test runs and 383 wickets in his career.