New Zealand cricketer Nathan McCullum’s death hoax spread like a wildfire and created quite a stir across social networking sites. A report claiming that the elder McCullum had died went viral. The 39-year-old cricketer then took to Twitter to apparently rubbish the report. “I am alive and kicking more than ever before. Not sure where this news has come from but this is fake. Love you all,” wrote Nathan on Twitter.

The hoax also had Nathan’s brother Brendon McCullum in a shock for some time as he believed the news was true. McCullum was on his flight back home after competing in the T10 Cricket League in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Brendon meanwhile has vowed to take action against the person who spread the fake news. "Tonight someone decided, via social media, to release that my brother passed away. I’m on a flight back to New Zealand and my heart broke! None of it is true! Whoever put this out there, I'll find you! Somewhere, somehow,” Brendon tweeted. Rajput’s Mohammad Shahzad Hits 76 Runs in 16 Balls at the Opening Match of T10 League 2018 Against Sindhis: Watch Video

A page called ‘New Zealand Cricket FanHub’ shared the fake news, the screenshot of which was later posted by Nathan. “Nathan Leslie McCullum (born September 1, 1980) is a former New Zealand international cricketer, who represented New Zealand in Twenty20 international and One Day internationals. This evening his wife Vannessa announced that he had passed away. RIP NATHAN,” read the post.

Following the death hoax, the former Blackcaps spinner's Wikipedia page was also edited which claimed that Nathan had died. This was later corrected though.

Nathan, who has played 84 ODIs and 63 T20Is for New Zealand, retired from international cricket in 2016. He has also represented teams like Pune Warriors and Sunrisers Hyderabad in the Indian Premier League (IPL).

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Dec 02, 2018 10:52 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).