'Ultimate legend of the game': England's bowling coach Troy Cooley lavishes praise on Jofra Archer

'Ultimate legend of the game': England's bowling coach Troy Cooley lavishes praise on Jofra Archer originally appeared on Cricket News. Add Cricket News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

KEY TAKEAWAYS:

Troy Cooley believes Jofra Archer has the skill level to become one of the game's ultimate legends.

Cooley says Archer's improved understanding of his own body is key to unlocking further growth.

The England bowling coach was speaking after his pace attack routed Pakistan across the recent Test series.

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Jofra Archer is already one of the fiercest speed bowlers from England

England has seen no shortage of fearsome fast bowlers. From Bob Willis to Andrew Flintoff to Steve Harmison, the English bowling unit always had a terrifying fast bowler in their arsenal. Jofra Archer remains the latest in that long line of pace legends, and for bowling coach Troy Cooley, he's already there among the greats.

And there aren't as many voices in international cricket that carry the same weight as him. For over 20 years, between Duncan Fletcher's England side that won the 2005 Ashes and stints coaching Australia and India, Cooley's words remain the gold standard when it comes to fast bowling.

Now back with the ECB since January, the 60-year-old Tasmanian has turned his attention to Archer. Speaking to Daily Mail Sport, Cooley made it clear that it was Archer's long-term ceiling that excites him the most, and he did not hold back when asked whether the fast bowler, who touched 94mph this summer, still has room to grow.

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What Troy Cooley said about Jofra Archer's potential

While Cooley watched Leicestershire and Hampshire's bowlers in county action, he reflected on England's pace attack. The battery led by Ollie Robinson, Josh Tongue, Gus Atkinson and Archer dismantled Pakistan so thoroughly over the three-match Test series that the visitors were bowled out under 200 five times over six innings.

The one time they crossed 400+ runs was when Razaullah's late counterattack briefly disturbed the pattern at Edgbaston. Archer remained a big part of this demolition.

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Cooley was quick to point out that Archer is still far away from reaching his absolute peak and there are still even better numbers to achieve.

"Of course he can. He's had a history of trying to get himself on the park, and he's learned how his body adapts and works. He's got the mentality that he wants to get better," Cooley said. He didn't stop there and even claimed that Archer has what it takes to be an all-time name.

"He's got the skill level to become one of the ultimate legends of the game, one of those great champions everyone talks about," Cooley said.

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Why Troy Cooley's read on Jofra Archer carries real weight

Cooley is not a coach prone to empty praise, and his own history is proof of just how credible his word is beyond the usual pre-Ashes hype.

He was part of the coaching staff for that 2005 English squad that saw Flintoff go absolutely off on the Aussies, taking 24 wickets and claiming the urn 2-1 for the first time since 1987.

It's also well known that he has an obvious preference for bowlers over batters that he only half-jokingly frames around resilience.

"Batters get a stress fracture of the brain when they do too much," he said. "Bowlers get a stress fracture of the body." That's what brings him back to Archer and his history of injuries.

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Recurring injuries have repeatedly interrupted his career since his 2019 Ashes debut, and Cooley's point is not simply about raw pace or skill, both of which have never been in question, but about whether Archer can now sustain his body through a longer run of cricket than he has previously managed.

If that durability holds, a fully fit Archer bowling into next year's home Ashes, backed by a coach who has already mastered one Ashes triumph against Australia, is a genuinely alarming challenge for the tourists to plan around.

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