Cowan reminded be of a Phil Hughes type player who was born in a parallel universe of more conservative scoring rates. Both of them crunched anything wide outside off, but you could drift onto the pads trying to find that 4th stump line, and he didnt have the ability to punish you. Players to be successful at the top level need options to score, and Cowan was left too often tied up easily. Decent enough technique, but his lack of scoring shots allowed bowlers to really have a go at him. Best I can remember was when Morne Morkel for some reason kept on bowling wide and short a few years back, and Cowan just kept smashing him. Weirdly, I think the saffer wonder attack never worked out how to bowl to him, everyone else did.
Sounds like he was a bit of an outsider though, or at least I know he always felt so. Supposed to be very well educated, and went to great lengths to try to prove he was not a just a higher class softie. I think it was him who refused to play for NSW until he felt he deserved to be picked. Might be wrong.
Side note... I think the aforementioned innings v South Africa was in the same test we got Rob Quiney on debut scoring the most epic 9 runs I have ever seen. Ill never forget Slats and Healy, at a time after England had beaten the Aussies at home and everyone was on a major downer, so desperate for a positive they literally talked of Quiney like he was Bradman. He made a scratchy 9.... then a pair.... then sadly disappeared.
It didnt stop Slats and Healy, who sat their debating how well he'd blocked the first ball... like a true international cricketer