Former Australian bowling coach Troy Cooley says it is possible for out-of-sorts paceman Ben Hilfenhaus to remodel his action before Friday's first Test against Sri Lanka in Hobart.
Hilfenhaus was the star of last summer, taking a series-high 27 wickets at 17.22 against India to cement his place in the Test team.
But the 29-year-old struggled to reach those heights in the three-Test series with South Africa, with chairman of selectors John Inverarity and coach Mickey Arthur suggesting Hilfenhaus's action needed to be worked on prior to the Sri Lanka series.
Hilfenhaus was bowling with a lower arm action against the Proteas rather than the more upright version which delivered the excellent results against India.
The poor return of just six wickets at 35.50 against Graeme Smith's men has forced Hilfenhaus into a battle with left-armers Mitchell Starc and Mitchell Johnson for the two pace spots alongside spearhead Peter Siddle.
And despite there being less than two weeks between Tests, Cooley backed Hilfenhaus and bowling coach Ali de Winter to iron out any kinks.
"I don't think you have to make big tweaks," Cooley said.
"I think Ali de Winter will be all over it.
"Of course some tweaks here and there are always on the cards when you're in that environment.
"I'm sure Hilfy's been working on that. He's been away (and) didn't play the last Test match of course.
"He'll be keen to get back in. I'm sure he'll be back to his best if selected to get on the field for that Test match."
Much of the blame for Hilfenhaus' deteriorating action has been aimed at Twenty20 cricket - the form which dominated the Tasmanian's schedule this year.
But Cooley believes that criticism is unwarranted, saying modern bowlers understand they need to switch between forms.
"Sometimes it's a mix of that," he said.
"There might be some niggles here or there and sometimes things just change.
"I'm not going to put it all down to one form of the game over another.
"They're professional cricketers now. You've got to change with the environment.
"I wouldn't place it on just T20 cricket or one day cricket. But in the end I think they'll know what they need to adjust.
"Mainly it's a mindset and also a physical (test). Test cricket you're going five days, the physical demands are pretty high on you so you've got to make sure you're fit."
AAP
Tags: cricket, sport, hobart-7000, tas, australia First posted December 10, 2012 11:50:43
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