Guess Who Saved Botham From The Crocs!

'I was nearly catch of the day for all the crocs and bull sharks.'

Cricket legend Ian Botham had a narrow escape during a fishing trip in Australia's Northern Territory.

One of the greatest all-rounders to have played the game, Botham fell into the crocodile-infested Moyle river. He was saved thanks to the timely action by close friend Merv Hughes.

Yes, Big Merv, he of the famous moustache, the scary glare and the dipping inswingers.

Beefy -- as Sir Ian Botham is known to team-mates and opponents -- got his flip-flops tangled in a rope as he tried to board a boat and fell into the Moyle river during the pair's four-day fishing trip, said a The Guardian report.

Fruitfly -- for that's Big Merv's unlikely nickname -- pulled out Beefy from the water before he was consumed by the crocs.

'My catch of the day was the barra while I was nearly catch of the day for all the crocs and bull sharks -- thanks boys for getting me out,' Beefy tells us on Instagram.

'At the end of the day Crocodile Beefy survived,' Beefy joked after the experience. 'I was out of the water quicker than I went in it. Quite a few sets of eyes were having a peep at me. Luckily I had no time to think about what was in the water.'

Thanks to Fruitfly, Beefy will get to celebrate his 69th birthday on November 24 -- a day after Big Merv's 63rd birthday -- in one piece. Both gentlemen will be in the commentary box those days for the first India-Australia Test in Perth unless, heavens forbid, the game ends early.