Cricket legend falls for 'greatest gee-up of all-time'

English cricket great Geoffrey Boycott has fallen victim to an epic prank from a co-commentator while live on air.

During the third Test between England and South Africa at The Oval, Boycott was conducting his commentary duties when he was stitched up by Jonathan Agnew.

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Agnew left Boycott fuming by breaking the bad news that his famous 100th hundred was actually only his 99th.

Agnew read out a fake press release declaring that the ICC had decided that matches played between England and a "Rest of the World" team in 1977 in South Africa would no longer be classified as official first class matches.

Agnew told Boycott that the decision was made because the matches were played while South Africa was gripped by Apartheid and banned from playing sport worldwide.

"In the interests of keeping cricket free from political interference, all matches will be removed from first class records," Agnew read.

Boycott took the bait hook, line and sinker.

"That’s a load of tripe. Isn't it ridiculous," Boycott said. "That's politics alone...cricket should say hey, we're not getting involved in politics, and that's what they should be saying. There might be other records that have to be taken out."

The BBC's official statistician then infuriated Boycott even more by revealing the century he scored in that series no longer counted on his record, meaning he officially achieved his 100th first class hundred in Pakistan, rather than the special feat of scoring it on home soil at Headingley.

"Faislabad! I got one in Faislabad, wonderful," Boycott fumed. "Well, a much better place Faislabad to get your hundredth hundred."

Boycott was particularly peeved by the fact that he's been planning an anniversary function for the milestone hundred, which occured on August 11, 1977.

"We're having a do at my house, 180 people, we're raising money for the Yorkshire Air Ambulance!"

"No we're celebrating it, because it's nonsense. There'll be other people as well, two or three after me got a hundred hundreds. I mean you can't go changing history just like that for politics."

Agnew finally let Boycott in on the joke: "It is a mess ... and also an absolute wind-up!"

"You Muppet, you ... it's never. Is that a wind-up? You Muppet, Agnew, I'll get you for that. You've got me a few times, but that's the biggest one," Boycott said as the commentary box broke out in laughter.

"You've done me easy haven't ya, like a kipper!"

Aussie great Dean Jones took to social media to express his appreciation for the gag.