SIDDLE SADDLES UP FOR A LONELY STAY
THERE are plenty of worse places for a fast bowler than Hobart this time of year, but it’s hard to think of any worse than where Peter Siddle finds himself stuck for the next two weeks.
The former Test star is confined in an airport hotel a few hundred metres from the end of the runway and a fortnight from human contact – it is handy for an overnight stay when you’ve got an early morning plane and an overnight bag, horrible for anything longer.
Siddle felt like a student heading off on an adventure when he packed his car with his worldly possessions, strapped his bike to the top of its roof, kissed his wife and drove down to catch the overnight ferry from Melbourne to Hobart on Saturday night.
“I haven’t physically seen anyone since I arrived,” Siddle said on Monday. “Even when they bring the meals to my door they ring the bell and leave, by the time I open the door they’re gone. It hasn’t been too bad so far but ask me again at the end of the week.”
A window onto a small courtyard space has allowed the odd glimpse of a passing human.
“There’s a few balls in one of my bags so maybe I can get out there and bowl some into the fence,” he said.
“The hotel is basically shut down for quarantine people but there is a bit of space in the car park where we can book a time to get some fresh air out there.
“It’s a little like being in prison. Obviously it’s not that bad and considering what’s happening to a lot of other people at home I’ve got it good. It is exciting to be a little bit closer to catching up with the Tassie boys, but it’s unsettling to leave family and friends behind in Melbourne at a time like this.”
Siddle has set the bicycle up on rollers and will use that to maintain some level of fitness before they unlock his hotel room door and allow him down for his first pre-season with Tasmania.
Siddle, who made his first class debut with Victoria in 2005 and his Australian Test debut three years later, was lured south when Tasmania offered a two-year contract and the chance to segue into a coaching career.