Howzat? Merv Hughes saves old foe Sir Ian ‘Beefy’ Botham from the crocodiles

In their feuding Ashes heyday, a snarling Merv Hughes was the one who would bare his teeth at old foe Sir Ian Botham as “Beefy” clouted his bowling around. There was no love lost.

But 40 years on, things have changed dramatically, with the English cricketing great now left saluting his old Aussie adversary for rescuing him from the teeth of lurking crocodiles deep in the Northern Territory.

The unlikely rescue act happened last week while the 68-year-old Botham – a revered figure in the British establishment and a good friend of Hughes following the end of their playing days – was on a four-day trip with his old mate among a bunch of friends fishing for barramundi.

Botham got his thongs caught in some roping while transferring to another boat and plunged head-first into the Moyle River, hundreds of kilometres southwest of Darwin, requiring former fast bowler Hughes and some other fellow fishermen to act quickly and bail him out of the water.

The English knight ended up with severe bruising to his torso from where he hit the side of the boat when being hauled up and was grateful to his 62-year-old buddy for ensuring he was spared from the crocodile and bull sharks known to inhabit the river.

“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,” Botham posted on Instagram.

The great all-rounder also told News Corp: “At the end of the day, Crocodile Beefy survived.

“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.