Australia snap up Cooley as bowling coach

Australia have reclaimed Troy Cooley, the England bowling coach who was a key factor in their Ashes win, to take on the same role with their own players next year. Cooley, who played for Tasmania in the Sheffield Shield, will finish his current post in May after three years in the job where he has also helped establish the ECB Academy.

Cooley has been widely praised for his work with Steve Harmison, Andrew Flintoff, Simon Jones and Matthew Hoggard, who surprised Australia's batsmen during the Ashes with their probing plans and reverse-swing. "It excites me to be able to return Down Under to work with talents ranging from the current players to the significant number of emerging youngsters around Australia," Cooley said.

James Sutherland, the Cricket Australia chief executive, said the role was seen as a priority following an analysis of team performance during the England series. "Troy was our first choice, the players from captain down rate him highly, and his work in England speaks for itself," he said. When he returns to Australia, Cooley will be based in Brisbane as head of the fast-bowling training program, working closely with the Australian team and the state associations.