'I'm all done': Peter Siddle calls time on cricket career after farewell BBL campaign with Melbourne Stars
Veteran quick Peter Siddle has confirmed this will be his final summer of top-level cricket.
Most famous for that hat-trick on his birthday in the 2010 Ashes series opener in Brisbane, Siddle retired from international cricket in 2019 after 67 Tests but has continued to perform strongly in the Sheffield Shield.
He this week inked a fresh one-year deal with the Melbourne Stars for the upcoming Big Bash League, and confirmed on Tuesday it would be a farewell deal.
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"I'm content. End of this summer, I'm all done," he said on 2GB's Wide World of Sports Radio.
Siddle was a foundation signing for the Stars ahead of the inaugural Big Bash League in 2011, but international duties meant he never played a game.
Peter Siddle after claiming the wicket of Stuart Broad in the 2010 Ashes series opener in Brisbane. Getty
He crossed Melbourne to the Renegades for the 2013 season, before a long stint with the Strikers. He spent last season with the Renegades.
Having inked the Stars deal in the same week he turned 40, Siddle suggested he wasn't in the side's best XI, but was hopeful of getting one more crack at playing in front of a big crowd at his beloved MCG.
"It's sort of strange going back there now. Hopefully I'll play a few games this summer and get one last crack at playing at the MCG before I finish up at the end of the summer. That would be very fitting," he said.
"It's been great to be able to continue to play to this age. I haven't got long left, but I'll try and make the most of what I do."
Siddle admitted aspects of the game were "growing a bit thin", but said the fire in his belly burns as strong as ever once thrown the ball.
"I don't enjoy standing out in the field as much, but as soon as I get the ball in the hand, I absolutely love it and love taking wickets and hopefully contributing," he said.
In three Shield appearances for Victoria this season, Siddle has taken 12 wickets, with best figures of 4-63 in the second innings against South Australia.
Siddle's Stars will travel to Perth to take on the Scorchers in the BBL opener on December 15.
