By Jamie Lillywhite

Gough's resurgence is excellent news for England

When Darren Gough retired from Test cricket in 2003, few would have imagined that he would be skittling Australian batsmen two years later and looking confidently towards the next World Cup.

Gough bowed out of the five-day game because of a persistent knee problem, having taken only one wicket in the opening two Tests against South Africa.

But after three operations and a move from his native Yorkshire to Essex, a revitalised Gough fought his way back into the England's one-day plans.

And he remains the team's spearhead for the NatWest Series against Australia and Bangladesh.

Gough has already made his mark on the Aussies, taking three wickets in the Twenty20 win at the Rose Bowl, where he bowled at a pace comparable with any stage of his career.

In the build-up to this season, Gough made some changes to his action in association with Essex bowling coach Ian Pont, who has taken a scientific approach to the art of fast bowling.

It's remarkable to think that someone of that age can bowl faster, he'd be the first name on the team sheet for me Ian Pont

"What we tried to do is change Darren's load-up - his front-arm position - so that instead of pulling across his body he extends the arm out in front of himself," Pont told BBC Sport.

"That effectively keeps his left arm very strong and he's able to pull against it, so the direct result of that is an increase in pace.

"Darren is probably the easiest guy I've ever worked with in my life.

"He's 34 going on 21, he's such a keen guy.

"There are people who are prima-donnas and people have big egos but Darren isn't either of those.

"He's full of confidence and always backs himself, if there's any information out there that he feels will help him he'll look at it."

The enthusiastic Pont, who only began working with Gough at beginning of March, is full of admiration for the way his star pupil has progressed.

Gough's action has undergone some subtle but significant changes

"He's done it extremely quickly, these are advanced bio-mechanics and these can take 10,000 repetitions for it to become sub-conscious.

"Changes to actions can feel a bit awkward because the timing changes.

"With a front-arm load-up, that's actually setting you, and looking at Darren's action he doesn't do anything else wrong, so his mechanics are very good.

"In English cricket he's our number one bowler by a long, long way and he's able to reverse swing the ball like only a few people on the planet and he's developed his own theories.

"Because he's such an accurate bowler, he's able to increase his speed without affecting his accuracy, if your mechanics are correct you bowl fast and straight.

"Traditionally what a coach would say to a young bowler is to slow down and bowl a line and length, well actually that's a mistake because if you slow down your mechanics change.

"What you want to do is to speed up and bowl a line and length, if you bowl faster your mechanics have to be better and you bowl straighter."

Another significant factor in Gough's resurgence is his fitness, with not only his action but his physique looking impressively streamlined.

The charismatic Gough is a central figure for England again

"He's been flying out to Germany to have treatment on his knees and he feels fully fit again," Pont said.

"In pre-season when we went outside for the first time and he came running in, he ran in as if he was 10 years younger and showed up some of the other guys, he seemed to be incredibly fit.

"One-day cricket is his thing, he loves the cut and thrust and he's still at the peak of his game."

Gough's form this season has been so impressive that Shane Warne has been among hinting that he could come out of Test retirement for the Ashes series.

Pont has no doubts, saying: "He'd be the first name on the team sheet for me.

"It's just a question of whether his knees would stand up to five days.

"I'm not convinced he would reverse his decision, I think he's comfortable playing four-day cricket with Essex and knowing he's only got 10 overs at a time for England, and he can deal with that.