Forced out of the ongoing seven-match One-Day International series against India due to a side soreness, Australian pacer Peter Siddle on Thursday said his injury was a result of playing almost non-stop cricket for the past five months.
On his return to Australia, Siddle, one of the five Australian cricketers who have been forced out of the series due to injuries, said he is glad to be back home after being on the road for so long.
"It's very pleasing to be home, back to see family and friends and sleep in my own bed," Siddle quipped.
"It has been a long tour, I guess, and the guys have been away for a long time now and we've probably played a bit too much cricket but we will see how we go and I am sure the boys will go well in the next three matches and come home with a (series) win," he was quoted as saying by The Australian Associated Press in Melbourne.
Siddle played in the World Twenty20 Championship, the Ashes, seven-match one-day series in England, the ICC Champions Trophy, the Champions League Twenty20 for Victoria before taking part in the seven-match ODI series in India.
The pacer said his injury, which he picked up during the fourth one-dayer in Mohali, is not all that serious and he would be fit for the home Test series against West Indies later this month.
"It's nothing bad. I just pulled up a little bit tight, with a bit of soreness, from the last match and they decided the best thing with the first Test coming up was just to come home and rest up and make sure I am 100 per cent fit and ready to go for that," Siddle said.
"There's no worries at all, just a bit of soreness, and the selectors and coaches thought it was the best thing to stay off for the rest of the game and come home and take it easy," he added.
Apart from Siddle, pace spearhead Brett Lee, all-rounders Moises Henriques and James Hopes and wicketkeeper Tim Paine have returned injured from India.
Vice-captain Michael Clarke, regular wicketkeeper Brad Haddin, paceman Nathan Bracken and batsman Callum Ferguson were not even there in the squad due to their respective injuries.
