Cooley cautions England batsmen

Troy Cooley, Australia's new bowling coach, has sounded a warning for England's batsmen, saying his bowlers will be well equipped to reclaim the Ashes, which starts in November.

Cooley, who returned to Australia after a two-year stint in the United Kingdom, played a major part in England's historic win last year by coaching the fast bowlers on reverse-swing, a factor which turned the series. This time, Cooley believes the Australians can master the same art and give England a taste of their own medicine.

However, he said in The Courier-Mail the conditions in Australia would not be as conducive to the movement. "If you've got grassy pitches and grassy outfields then you are not going to be looking at reverse-swing," he told the paper. "Reverse-swing is just one of the deliveries we are going to try to make sure the bowlers have. We will be looking holistically at the whole bowling make-up and making sure they can deliver whatever they need to deliver.

Cooley was quick to point out England's effective pace attack, describing them as "nasty fasties" and warning the Australia batsmen not to get too carried away with their home advantage. "They've got bounce and things like that," he told AAP. "They will work very hard to make sure they are ready to come across here and play.

"I think the [England] batters are going to be the ones that will need to do a lot more work," Cooley told BBC Sport. "They'll be doing the things they need to do to hold the Ashes - we'll be working very hard to take them back."

Cooley will be based at Australia's Centre of Excellence in Brisbane and will work with the bowlers on an individual basis. He had encouraging words about the depth and talent of the bowlers on view and was confident of their abilities to support Australia's ageing bowling attack.

"I'm very excited about working with all the bowlers," he said. "Fast bowling is one of those arts where you are going to get injured, so the fast-bowling programme wants to make sure there are at least seven to ten fast bowlers who can walk into the Test and one-day scene and do very well."