Australia · Bowler

Peter Siddle: Age, 221 Test Wickets & Ashes Hat-Trick

Peter Siddle is an Australian fast bowler best known for taking 221 Test wickets and an Ashes hat-trick on his 26th birthday. Born on 25 November 1984, he was 41 on 30 August 2026 and remained active in franchise cricket after retiring internationally in 2019. His career stretches from Victoria and 67 Tests for Australia to county cricket, a Big Bash title with Adelaide Strikers, a 100th BBL appearance and a BBL|16 contract with Melbourne Stars. In 2026 he also represented Multan Sultans and San Francisco Unicorns. The dated career record shows 792 first-class wickets, while current competition sources document the later stages of a career built on accuracy, stamina and repeated reinvention.

By StumpScope Cricket Desk · Edited by StumpScope Editorial Team

Right-handedRight-arm fast-medium bowlerBorn 25 November 1984

Current squadMelbourne StarsBig Bash League · Contracted for BBL|16 after selection in the BBL|15 Team of the Tournament

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Full namePeter Matthew Siddle

Age41As of 30 August 2026

Date of birth25 November 1984Victoria, Australia

Batting styleRight-handed

Bowling styleRight-arm fast-medium

Career overview

Peter Siddle cricket career

Born on 25 November 1984; age 41 on 30 August 2026.

Right-handed batter and right-arm fast-medium bowler.

Took 221 wickets in 67 Tests for Australia at 30.66.

Claimed an Ashes hat-trick and six for 54 on his 26th birthday in 2010.

Recorded 792 first-class wickets and a highest score of 103 not out through 2 April 2025.

Contracted by Melbourne Stars for BBL|16 after taking 16 wickets in BBL|15.

Career story

Peter Siddle career and playing journey

Who is Peter Siddle?

Peter Siddle is a former Australia international and an active domestic fast bowler. He played 67 Tests between 2008 and 2019, taking 221 wickets, and also appeared in 20 ODIs. His most replayed moment is the hat-trick against England at the Gabba on his 26th birthday, but the length of his career is just as significant as its single most famous over.

Siddle built that longevity across distinct phases. He developed with Victoria, led Australia's attack through several Ashes campaigns, rebuilt his game in county cricket, retired internationally at the end of 2019 and continued in the Big Bash and overseas leagues. Melbourne Stars retained him for BBL|16 after he was selected in the BBL|15 Team of the Tournament.

Peter Siddle's age, date of birth and Victorian roots

Siddle was born on 25 November 1984 and was 41 years old on 30 August 2026. He grew up in Victoria's Latrobe Valley, the region that shaped his path into state cricket. Public records differ on the precise birthplace label: the historical career record says Morwell, while Cricket Australia's current profile lists nearby Traralgon.

The safest description is therefore Victoria's Latrobe Valley rather than pretending the two labels agree. This distinction does not change his identity or career record, but acknowledging it is more accurate than silently choosing one database. His date of birth is consistent across the principal cricket sources.

What type of bowler is Peter Siddle?

Siddle is a right-arm fast-medium bowler and a right-handed lower-order batter. At his best he combined a tight line, late movement and the stamina to maintain pressure through long spells. Cricket Australia lists him as a pace bowler, while his record of 792 first-class wickets shows how effectively that method travelled across countries and competitions.

Raw speed was never the whole explanation. Siddle could push towards 145 kilometres per hour even late in his career, but control, fitness and repeatable mechanics made him useful when pitches offered little help. Captains could use him with the new ball, through a holding spell or against an older ball when persistence mattered more than novelty.

How did Peter Siddle reach first-class cricket?

Siddle entered senior cricket through Victoria and made his first-class debut in the 2005-06 season. His early progress was interrupted by shoulder injuries, so his route to Australia was not a straight rise from youth prospect to Test regular. Strong domestic performances eventually earned him a place on the 2008 tour of India.

That background matters because it foreshadowed the rest of his career. Siddle repeatedly returned from injuries, selection setbacks and changes in team direction. The volume of his later first-class work was built not only on talent but also on staying valuable after each interruption.

Peter Siddle's Test debut and first international wicket

Siddle made his Test debut against India at Mohali on 17 October 2008. His first Test wicket was Sachin Tendulkar, one of the defining batters of the era. The debut began an international career that lasted more than eleven years and included tours of India, England, South Africa, New Zealand and the Caribbean.

A famous first wicket did not guarantee an automatic place. Australia's attack changed repeatedly during those years, and Siddle had to compete with fast bowlers offering different combinations of pace, height and swing. His value came from making himself dependable across conditions rather than from one debut headline.

Why did Peter Siddle win the 2009 ICC Emerging Player award?

Siddle was named ICC Emerging Player of the Year in 2009 after taking 49 Test wickets during the award's voting period. The ICC recorded those wickets at an average of 28.93 across 12 Tests. His five for 21 at Headingley during the Ashes was one of the performances that strengthened his case.

The award measured a defined period, not his entire career. It recognised how quickly he became a major part of Australia's attack after debut. It also arrived before the birthday hat-trick that later became his best-known moment, showing that his international standing had already been established.

Peter Siddle's birthday Ashes hat-trick

On 25 November 2010, Siddle dismissed Alastair Cook, Matt Prior and Stuart Broad with consecutive deliveries at the Gabba. The hat-trick came on his 26th birthday in the opening Test of the 2010-11 Ashes. He finished England's first innings with six for 54, which remained his best Test innings return.

The sequence worked because each ball asked a different question. Cook edged to slip, Prior was bowled and Broad was trapped lbw after a review. The crowd reaction and birthday setting made the over unforgettable, but six wickets across the whole innings provide the fuller measure of his work that day.

How important was Peter Siddle against India in 2011-12?

Siddle took 23 wickets in Australia's 4-0 home series win over India in 2011-12. He maintained pressure across the four Tests while Australia's pace group repeatedly prevented India from building long first-innings platforms. The series sits among his strongest sustained international campaigns.

Series totals need the team context around them. Siddle worked alongside an attack rather than taking every decisive wicket himself, and Australia's batters created scoreboard pressure. His contribution was durability: he kept producing wickets through the full series instead of relying on one exceptional spell.

What did Peter Siddle's Adelaide workload reveal?

Siddle bowled 63.5 overs in the 2012 Adelaide Test against South Africa and took eight wickets in the match. Australia narrowly failed to force a result after he and fellow seamer Ben Hilfenhaus carried an enormous workload. The effort became a reference point for Siddle's endurance, even though it ended in a draw.

That match also shows why workload should not be romanticised without context. Long spells can demonstrate fitness and tactical trust, but they also increase physical strain. Siddle missed the following Test at Perth, so the Adelaide performance belongs to both his reputation for persistence and the limits even a durable fast bowler faces.

Was Peter Siddle useful with the bat?

Siddle was a bowler first, but he was not an automatic wicket with the bat. His Test record includes 1,164 runs, two fifties and a highest score of 51. In first-class cricket he went further, making 3,990 runs and an unbeaten 103, his only century through the dated 2025 snapshot.

The century came for Australia A against Scotland in 2013. It did not make him an all-rounder, because his selection case remained overwhelmingly based on bowling. It did show that he could occupy the crease, support a recognised batter and punish tired attacks when a lower-order partnership developed.

Peter Siddle across the 2013 Ashes

Siddle played all ten Tests across the two Ashes series staged in 2013. He took five for 50 at Trent Bridge in the English summer, then contributed as Australia won the return series at home 5-0. Appearing throughout both campaigns required adaptability as conditions and the balance of Australia's attack changed.

His role was not identical in every Test. Sometimes he attacked the stumps for wickets; elsewhere he held an end while a faster colleague used short bursts. That less glamorous work helps explain why match totals alone can understate the value of a bowler trusted across a long series.

When did Peter Siddle take his 200th Test wicket?

Siddle reached 200 Test wickets by dismissing Kane Williamson in the day-night Test at Adelaide in 2015. Cricket Australia reported that he became the 15th Australian bowler to reach the mark. The milestone placed him in a select national group before the final phase of his international career.

Two hundred is a cumulative achievement, not a measure of one season. Siddle had reached it through different roles, injuries and selection cycles over seven years. He eventually added 21 more Test wickets, finishing with 221 when he retired internationally in December 2019.

How did county cricket extend Peter Siddle's career?

County cricket gave Siddle repeated opportunities to refine his skills and prove his fitness outside Australia's home season. He represented Nottinghamshire, Lancashire, Essex and Somerset across different spells. The Dukes ball and long Championship schedule rewarded the control and movement that increasingly defined his later career.

His Essex period was especially important before the 2019 Ashes. Regular cricket helped him remain in Australia's plans after several years outside the Test side. County success did not guarantee international selection, but it provided current evidence that his pace and accuracy still worked against high-level batters.

Peter Siddle's 500th first-class wicket

Siddle reached 500 first-class wickets while playing for Essex against Somerset in August 2018. He marked the occasion with five for 80. Cricket Australia's account placed the milestone within a county spell that helped revive his international prospects.

The figure already included his Test wickets because Tests are first-class matches. It should never be added to the international tally as though they were separate categories. By the table dated 2 April 2025, his overall first-class total had grown to 792 wickets from 231 matches.

How did Peter Siddle return for the 2019 Ashes?

Siddle returned to Australia's Ashes squad in 2019 after strong county form and careful management of his bowling. He played three Tests in the series as Australia retained the urn in England. His selection reflected a conditions-specific judgment rather than a return to being an automatic pick in every match.

At that stage Australia could choose among several elite fast bowlers. Siddle's county experience and ability to challenge the outside edge made him useful in England. The comeback added a final chapter to his Test career without rewriting the peaks that had come earlier.

Peter Siddle's international retirement and final record

Siddle announced his international retirement on 29 December 2019. He finished with 221 wickets in 67 Tests at an average of 30.66, including eight five-wicket innings and best figures of six for 54. Cricket Australia's retirement report placed him 13th among Australian Test wicket-takers at that time.

He also played 20 ODIs, taking 17 wickets, but never built the same sustained role in limited-overs international cricket. Retirement closed his Australia record; it did not end his domestic career. He continued playing county, Big Bash and overseas franchise cricket for years afterward.

How did Peter Siddle become a Big Bash winner?

Siddle helped Adelaide Strikers win the 2017-18 Big Bash League title. He took three for 17 in the final against Hobart Hurricanes and ended the campaign with 11 wickets at an economy rate of 5.94. The final spell was a direct contribution to the Strikers' first championship.

The season also showed that a red-ball specialist could adapt successfully to T20. Siddle reduced boundary options through accuracy and changes of pace rather than trying to bowl every delivery at maximum speed. That method later supported his transition into a senior death-bowling role.

Peter Siddle's 100th BBL match and BBL|15 season

Siddle reached his 100th Big Bash appearance for Melbourne Stars in January 2026. Across all 11 Stars matches in BBL|15, the club credited him with 16 wickets at an average of 17. Cricket Australia's regular-season selection used a narrower ten-match cutoff and listed 16 wickets at 15.81 with an economy of 6.99.

Those averages differ because the scopes differ, not because one must be wrong. The club's end-of-season summary includes all 11 appearances; the editorial team selection was made from the regular-season sample. Keeping the denominator visible prevents two legitimate records from looking contradictory.

What is Peter Siddle's BBL career record?

Cricket Australia's current player page lists 104 BBL matches and 127 wickets, with best figures of five for 16. It also records two five-wicket hauls, a bowling average of 21.06 and an economy rate of 7.56. Those are Big Bash figures, not his complete record across every recognised T20 league.

Melbourne Stars re-signed him for BBL|16 after his BBL|15 return. A contract confirms squad status and intended availability; it does not guarantee selection in every fixture. Future match totals should update only when the competition record confirms that he played.

How did Peter Siddle perform in the 2026 PSL?

Siddle played 11 matches for Multan Sultans in the 2026 Pakistan Super League. The PCB tournament record lists 13 wickets, best figures of three for 39, a bowling average of 27.31, a strike rate of 18.46 and an economy rate of 8.88. He finished as Multan's leading wicket-taker in that campaign.

The figures belong only to PSL 2026. They should not be mixed with his BBL career or used to manufacture an overall T20 total absent from the dated career table. They show that, at 41, he could still complete a full short tournament and carry a meaningful share of a franchise attack.

What was Peter Siddle's role for San Francisco Unicorns in 2026?

San Francisco Unicorns brought Siddle into their 2026 Major League Cricket squad as injury cover and later confirmed him as the approved replacement for Ravichandran Ashwin. In the season opener he took two for 27 in a shortened defeat to Los Angeles Knight Riders, then returned three for 36 in a win over Texas Super Kings.

Those exact match figures are more dependable than an unsourced season aggregate. A replacement registration establishes why he joined the squad, while the score reports establish what he did in named matches. Neither fact supports a claim about future MLC availability beyond that competition window.

Peter Siddle's Test and first-class statistics

The completed Test row records 67 matches, 1,164 runs and 221 wickets. Siddle averaged 30.66 with the ball, took eight five-wicket innings and recorded best figures of six for 54. His 35 catches and two batting fifties add useful detail without changing his primary classification as a bowler.

The first-class snapshot dated 2 April 2025 contains 231 matches, 3,990 runs and 792 wickets at 26.20. His best innings return was eight for 54, and he took 27 five-wicket hauls. The first-class total includes Tests and county, state and other qualifying matches, so its categories overlap with the international row.

Peter Siddle's ODI and List A statistics

Siddle played 20 ODIs for Australia, taking 17 wickets at 43.70 with best figures of three for 55. His batting contribution in the format was 31 runs. The smaller sample explains why his international reputation rests much more heavily on Test cricket than on one-day internationals.

Across all List A cricket through 2 April 2025, he had 111 wickets in 86 matches at 30.54, including best figures of five for 49. His List A batting record contained 315 runs and a highest score of 62. ODIs sit inside that wider List A total and must not be added again.

What is known about Peter Siddle's salary and net worth?

No audited public record reviewed for this profile establishes Siddle's current net worth, Melbourne Stars salary, PSL earnings or total career income. Contract announcements confirm employment or registration, but they do not disclose every payment, tax obligation, bonus, endorsement or expense.

Online wealth estimates should therefore be treated as speculation unless a reliable financial source explains its method and evidence. Even a published league price would describe one defined contract, not personal wealth. This profile does not convert roster status into an unsupported money claim.

Peter Siddle records

Peter Siddle career statistics and records

Batting, bowling and fielding figures are kept separate by competition and format.

Tests (complete international record)67matches

Batting

Innings: 85
Runs: 1,164
High score: 51
Average: 14.73
Strike rate: 39.75
Not outs: 9
100s / 50s: 0/2

Bowling & fielding

Innings: 126
Wickets: 221
Best bowling: 6/54
Average: 30.66
Economy: 2.92
Strike rate: 62.9
Balls: 13,907
Catches / stumpings: 35 catches; stumpings not listed
5w / 10w: 8 / 0

ODIs (complete international record)20matches

Batting

Innings: 10
Runs: 31
High score: 10*
Average: 6.20
Strike rate: 40.78
Not outs: 5
100s / 50s: 0/0

Bowling & fielding

Innings: 20
Wickets: 17
Best bowling: 3/55
Average: 43.70
Economy: 4.62
Strike rate: 56.6
Balls: 963
Catches / stumpings: 3 catches; stumpings not listed
5w / 10w: 0 five-wicket hauls; ten-wicket hauls not listed

First-class (through 2 April 2025)231matches

Batting

Innings: 315
Runs: 3,990
High score: 103*
Average: 16.08
Not outs: 67
100s / 50s: 1/13

Bowling & fielding

Wickets: 792
Best bowling: 8/54
Average: 26.20
Economy: 2.62
Strike rate: 59.8
Balls: 47,382
Catches / stumpings: 90 catches; stumpings not listed
5w / 10w: 27 / 0

Only fields published by the named source are shown; unavailable values are not guessed.

List A (through 2 April 2025)86matches

Batting

Innings: 51
Runs: 315
High score: 62
Average: 10.50
Strike rate: 58.22
Not outs: 21
100s / 50s: 0/1

Bowling & fielding

Innings: 82
Wickets: 111
Best bowling: 5/49
Average: 30.54
Economy: 4.88
Strike rate: 37.5
Balls: 4,163
Catches / stumpings: 18 catches; stumpings not listed
5w / 10w: 1 five-wicket hauls; ten-wicket hauls not listed

Big Bash League (through BBL|15)104matches

Batting

Runs: 80

Bowling & fielding

Wickets: 127
Best bowling: 5/16
Average: 21.06
Economy: 7.56
5w / 10w: 2 five-wicket hauls; ten-wicket hauls not listed

Only fields published by the named source are shown; unavailable values are not guessed.

Career chronology

Debut and last listed match

First-class

Debut

Victoria, 2005-06 season

Last listed match

Career snapshot through 2 April 2025

Test

Debut

Australia v India, Mohali, 17 October 2008

Last listed match

Australia v England, The Oval, September 2019

ODI

Debut

Australia v New Zealand, Sydney, 13 February 2009

Last listed match

Australia v Sri Lanka, Sydney, March 2010

Big Bash League

Debut

Melbourne Renegades, 2012-13

Last listed match

Melbourne Stars, BBL|15; contracted for BBL|16

Career achievements

Career achievements and milestones

Won the 2009 ICC Emerging Player of the Year award.
Took an Ashes hat-trick and six for 54 on his 26th birthday at the Gabba.
Finished his Australia career with 221 wickets in 67 Tests.
Reached 500 first-class wickets for Essex in 2018 and 792 by April 2025.
Took three for 17 as Adelaide Strikers won the 2017-18 BBL final.
Reached 100 BBL matches and took 16 wickets for Melbourne Stars in BBL|15.

Reader questions

Peter Siddle FAQ

How old is Peter Siddle?

Peter Siddle was born on 25 November 1984 and was 41 years old on 30 August 2026.

Where was Peter Siddle born?

He is from Victoria's Latrobe Valley. Historical sources list Morwell, while Cricket Australia's current profile lists nearby Traralgon, so the regional description is the most accurate way to reflect the source conflict.

How many Test wickets did Peter Siddle take?

Siddle took 221 wickets in 67 Tests for Australia at an average of 30.66, with best innings figures of six for 54.

Who did Peter Siddle dismiss in his Ashes hat-trick?

He dismissed Alastair Cook, Matt Prior and Stuart Broad with consecutive balls at the Gabba on 25 November 2010.

Did Peter Siddle take a hat-trick on his birthday?

Yes. His Ashes hat-trick came on his 26th birthday and formed part of his six for 54 against England.

When did Peter Siddle retire from international cricket?

He announced his international retirement on 29 December 2019 after finishing his Test career with 221 wickets.

How many first-class wickets does Peter Siddle have?

The career table dated 2 April 2025 records 792 wickets in 231 first-class matches at an average of 26.20.

Has Peter Siddle won the Big Bash League?

Yes. He took three for 17 in the 2017-18 final as Adelaide Strikers defeated Hobart Hurricanes to win the title.

How many BBL wickets has Peter Siddle taken?

Cricket Australia's current profile lists 127 wickets in 104 BBL matches, including best figures of five for 16.

Which team is Peter Siddle playing for in BBL|16?

Melbourne Stars re-signed Siddle for BBL|16 after he took 16 wickets and made the BBL|15 Team of the Tournament.

Conclusion

Peter Siddle's career is larger than one famous hat-trick. The 221 Test wickets, 2009 ICC award, sustained Ashes work and 792 first-class wickets describe a bowler who survived injuries and changing selection cycles through control, fitness and adaptability.

His later years add a different kind of achievement. Siddle became a Big Bash champion, reached 100 BBL matches, earned another Melbourne Stars contract and continued taking franchise wickets into 2026. That longevity connects the young fast bowler who dismissed Sachin Tendulkar on debut with the experienced professional still solving short-format problems nearly two decades later.