23 foot-long python leaves horrific injuries on villager [photos]

A man is recovering in hospital after winning a fight to the death with a 23-foot python.

Robert Nababan says he came across the huge reptile on a road on his way home from work in the Indragiri Hulu Regency of Riau Province in Indonesia.

The 37-year-old was riding his moped when he saw two pedestrians blocked from crossing the road by the giant snake.

From his hospital bed, he related the story of how he had tried to get hold of the massive creature.

“I tried to catch it,” he said. “But it bit my arm and we wrestled for a while.”

The snake’s giant body is shown in pictures strung across Mr Nababan’s village like a washing line. He is reported to have suffered deep lacerations to his left arm and hand.

It was also reported that he was suffering from exhaustion.

The unlucky snake may be a reticulated python – the largest specimens of which can sometimes reach seven metres (23 feet).