Melbourne Stars veteran has defied his age in BBL|14 to reach speeds in the mid-140s
Need for speed: The 'perk' in 40-year-old Siddle's step
Peter Siddle has left the door ajar to play on into an 11th Big Bash season next summer as he relishes winding back the clock in KFC BBL|14 with a return to speeds in excess of 140kph.
While the evergreen seamer admitted on The Surge Podcast he was "definitely done" with state cricket following the end current Sheffield Shield season as a move into coaching beckons, the 40-year-old says he'll "wait and see" if an opportunity presents to go around again in the Big Bash.
Siddle didn't even have a BBL contract less than a fortnight out from the start of this season, filling the last spot on Melbourne Stars list for BBL|14 – the club he initially signed for ahead of the competition's inaugural season in 2011-12 but never debuted for due to his international commitments at the time.
The veteran right-armer has played eight of the Stars nine games so far this season and is the club's joint leading wicket-taker alongside Mark Steketee with 11 (economy rate 7.06) to help his side roar back into finals contention with four straight wins.
Siddle's pace has been a feature of his form in BBL|14, revealing he'd surprised even himself by regularly clocking above the 140kph mark.
He pushed the radar gun to 144kph with a delivery that bowled Sydney Sixers batter Jordan Silk last week, while he also bowled Will Sutherland with a 142.5kph rocket last Sunday and Melbourne Renegades' debutant Harry Dixon copped a 143.8kph full toss for his first ball faced in the BBL.
Defying his age, those speeds put Siddle among Riley Meredith, Spencer Johnson and Lance Morris as one of the quickest bowlers in the tournament.
"I didn't think I could do it at that age either," said Siddle on The Surge.
"I'm fresh, I'm feeling good … I'm trying to bowl fast just to make an impact.
"But it's definitely coming out a lot better than I probably expected.
"The reason why (it's coming out that fast), I don't really know, but it's feeling good and it's nice to be back up bowling that speed.
"It's definitely a good feeling at my age – it's got me got a little perk in my step at the moment."
Siddle, who has only gone wicketless once in his eight BBL|14 appearances, said he wasn't ever thinking about the speed he was bowling but rather the rhythm he was in.
"I don't even worry about (the speed), which is probably a better thing, because all I'm thinking is running fast and bowling fast," he said.
"It's just about feel and rhythm; it's always been that if I've got good rhythm and good feel, that's when I bowl at my best.
"Yorkers are predominantly the quicker ball (for) everyone. But the thing that's surprised me most, especially the last couple of games, is that I bowled more length balls and they've been my quickest balls.
"It's not like, 'oh, I'm bowling a bit quicker but then the yorker is even quicker' – it's the length ball that's has been my quicker ball.
"I'm happy that it's coming out quicker but also that I'm able to play a part and my role on the team."
Siddle signed a two-year deal in 2023 to return home to Victoria to play out his domestic career in a move that also included a player-mentor role with the state's emerging fast bowlers.
The former international was on the Melbourne Renegades list last summer but only featured in four games. He said he was content with not playing Big Bash at all this summer until the Stars came calling 12 days before the BBL|14 opener.
"I'm definitely done with state cricket; Big Bash we'll maybe wait and see," Siddle said.
"Five weeks ago, I didn't even have a (BBL) contract. I was the last contract in the whole competition.
"So up until then, I was pretty content.
"I didn't play a lot last year, so I hadn't really thought too much in advance.
"With how the ball is coming out, how well I'm going, how I'm feeling and even the pace that I can get to, I'm feeling really comfortable, so who knows? Maybe, but a lot of water to go under the bridge before I even worry about that."
After starting the season with five consecutive losses, the Stars remarkably have their finals fate back in their own hands following Brisbane Heat's loss to Hobart Hurricanes last night.
If the Stars beat the Hurricanes in the final game of the regular season at the MCG on Sunday, they'll be into the finals for the first time in five seasons.
"(Our) New Year's resolution was to try and win one game," Siddle said. "2025 has been good to us, it's been a great turnaround.
"It's exciting too that now we are the last game – we were the first game, we played a lot early, so we've been ahead of everyone in games.
"But now we play the last game, so it's been good to put the pressure back on everyone else.
"We've done as much as we can and put the pressure back on them and see who can stand up and who will fold."
KFC BBL|14 standings
| Team | M | W | L | T | N/R | NRR | Ded. | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1
HUR
|
9 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0.135 | 0 | 15 |
|
2
SIX
|
9 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0.156 | 0 | 13 |
|
3
THU
|
9 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0.34 | 0 | 11 |
|
4
STA
|
9 | 4 | 5 | 0 | 0 | -0.073 | 0 | 8 |
|
5
HEA
|
9 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 1 | -0.794 | 0 | 7 |
|
6
STR
|
9 | 3 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0.067 | 0 | 6 |
|
7
SCO
|
9 | 3 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0.057 | 0 | 6 |
|
8
REN
|
9 | 3 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0.033 | 0 | 6 |
M: Matches played
W: Wins
L: Losses
T: Ties
N/R: No results
NRR: Net Run Rate
Ded.: Deductions
PTS: Total points