England cricket legend Ian Botham was recently rescued from a fall into the crocodile-infested Moyle River by his former Ashes rival Merv Hughes.
According to reports, Botham was on a four-day fishing trip with Aussie Merv Hughes in Australia’s Northern Territory. Botham tumbled into the river after his flip-flops were tangled on a rope while attempting to board a boat.
Botham’s long-time on-field rival Hughes reacted in a snap to help him escape from the waters. Botham sustained a heavy bruising to the side of his torso.
“I was out of the water quicker than I went in it. Quite a few sets of eyes were having a peep at me,” Botham said.
“Luckily I had no time to think about what was in the water.”
Reports have also claimed that bull sharks were swimming in the waters in the proximity of Botham and Hughes’ boat.
Botham escaped from the waters with a bruising on his torso. (Instagram)
“The guys were brilliant, it was just one of those accidents,” Botham said. “It was all very quick and I’m OK now.”
Botham and Hughes were in the spotlight for their on-field clashes during the Ashes in the 1980s. Botham had clubbed Hughes for 22 runs in an over, a then-record in the contest.
“It got ugly when Botham made 22 runs from a single over, scoring 2, 2, 4, 6, 4 and 4 off me. I am embarrassed to say it was a record for the most runs off an over in an Ashes Test. I would check the record books, desperately hoping some poor soul had been worse, and while I found there was once 24 scored off an over, it was from an eight-ball over,” Hughes would later tell in the book ‘The Match of My Life: The Ashes’.
Hughes, 62, played 53 Tests for Australia, snapping up 212 wickets across a nine-year career. Despite their several on-field clashes, Botham and Hughes have been buddies since their retirements.
The duo are slated to commentate together during Australia’s forthcoming Border Gavaskar Trophy, starting with the first Test against India in Perth on November 22.
