The two umpires in action during the recent Test series

He said a threat to kill both umpires was made in a phone call to the chief executive's office at the ground.

"I was told that the threat came towards the end of the last day," Bucknor told the Sunday Telegraph.

"The words the caller used were 'we are going to get rid of Aleem Dar and Steve Bucknor, we are going to shoot them'."

Bucknor, 58, a Jamaican who has stood in a record 99 Tests, added: "You get lots of abuse as an umpire, but that is the first time that I have been threatened to that extent."

Since the Test, Dar has returned home, but Bucknor has stayed in Johannesburg to officiate in the forthcoming one-day series.

He said: "I briefly thought about cutting short my stay and going home to the Caribbean, but I convinced myself that I am stronger than that.

"If umpires react to threats like that, then there will be a flood of them.

"I have to say that I am not really worried about it - the words were serious, but I am not sure whether the person who said them was serious - I am certain it was just a hoax call."

The series, won 2-1 by England, featured plenty of controversial moments.