England cricket legend Sir Ian Botham was rescued by a former Australian rival after he fell off a ship into water “infested” with sharks and crocodiles.
The retired all-rounder was on a fishing journey with former Australian fast-bowler Merv Hughes when he obtained his flip-flops caught in some roping and plunged head-first into the Moyle River close to Darwin, northern Australia.
Sir Ian, nicknamed Beefy, suffered extreme bruising to his torso after hitting the boat on his approach down – however escaped a worse destiny when Hughes and fellow fishermen rapidly pulled him out.
Merv Hughes was an on-pitch rival of Sir Ian throughout their cricket careers. Pic: Reuters
The 68-year-old wrote on Instagram on Friday: “My catch of the day was the barra [fish] whereas I used to be almost catch of the day for all of the crocs and bull sharks…
“Thanks boys for getting me out.”
The river is understood for being infested with crocodiles, in line with native media, whereas a household of bull sharks was additionally seen lurking beneath the boat as Sir Ian fell in.
Referencing the movie Crocodile Dundee, he told Australia’s Herald Sun newspaper: “On the finish of the day Crocodile Beefy survived.
“I used to be out of the water faster than I went in it. Fairly a number of units of eyes had been having a peep at me. Fortunately I had no time to consider what was within the water.”
The river that Sir Ian fell into is understood for being infested with crocodiles. File pic: iStock
The cricket commentator added: “The blokes had been sensible, it was simply a kind of accidents. It was all very fast and I am okay now.”
Sir Ian, who was awarded a knighthood in 2020, was an on-pitch rival of Hughes throughout clashes between England and Australia within the Nineteen Eighties, however the pair have turn out to be good pals of their retirement from the game.
The duo had been reportedly on a four-day boat journey to catch barramundi fish when the incident occurred final week.
Sir Ian is claimed to have gotten caught within the roping whereas he and his companions had been crossing from a small boat into one other vessel.
He’s reported to be in Australia to commentate alongside Hughes on a collection of upcoming matches, together with the primary Check between Australia and India.
He’s thought of one among England’s biggest cricketers, having notched up 5,200 take a look at runs and 383 wickets throughout his profession.
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