When the Indian team left for the tour of Australia, the biggest concern was the batting line-up which was up against history to make a mark on the foreign soil. Two recent overseas tours of South Africa and England had shown that the batting unit was practically reduced to a two and a half individuals. With the exception of brilliant Virat Kohli, there was nothing much to write home about other than Cheteshwar Pujara and an occasional spark.

With three tests done and dusted and fourth underway, India is firmly on the saddle to register a historic series win Down Under.

For a change, it was India’s pace battery that has become the talk of the cricketing world as it turned into a demolition squad dismantling the Australian batting on their home turf.

One can not recall the last time when Indian pacers instilled fear in opponents like the current lot of Jaspreet Bumrah, Mohammad Shami, Ishant Sharma and Umesh Yadav.

Together, they broke the record of legendary West Indian speedsters Joel Garner, Michael Holding and Malcom Marshall of taking 130 wickets in nine tests in a calendar year.

Indian cricket has all been about great batsmen and it was the spinners who would weave a web to trap the foreign teams on the dusty turning local tracks. The pace had always been used only as a complimentary arrangement.

The script  has changed completely by the likes of Bumrah who has emerged as lethal a bowler. His unconventional action and ability to generate speed with short run up has made the batsmen nervous.

For a change, the Australian former cricketers and coaches are telling their players to take a cue from the Indian pacers how they were exploiting the conditions.

Tests are won  by taking 20 wickets. The Indian pace machine has mastered the art of bowling out opponents. It is being regarded as the best Indian pace attack to land in Australia.

The South Africans had warned Australians. Though India most the series 2-1 to Proteas, the Indians left the South African shores with their heads held high and respect from their opponents.

Faf du Plessis had predicted that Indian pacers would decide the outcome of the India-Australia series.

A pace attack is never an individual effort. Pacers hunt in a pack. Bumhrah is backed by Shami who can consistently bowl good deliveries for long hours and Ishant Sharma carrying with him years of experience. The bench strength is equally impressive with Umesh Yadav and master of swing bowling Bhuvaneshvar Kumar waiting in the wings for conditions suitable for him.

Not finding good pacers had been the biggest lament of Indian cricket often inviting jokes that vegetarians don’t make speed machines.

All the notions, beliefs and assumptions have been erased by these pacers. One of the biggest reasons for this turnaround is certainly the Indian Premier League (IPL). If the biggest cricketing league produced pinch hitters, it also gave an all new meaning to the bowlers. T20 is considered to be a platform for the batters but bowlers have learned discipline and innovative ways to tame the willow.

Bumrah is a product of IPL and in fact his last Australia tour was in the T20 squad. He has come a long way mastering the art of bowling in the death overs. He has extended his craft to the tests and is only two wickets away in getting 50 scalps in only his ninth outing in the extended form of the game. His transition from the coloured to the whites has been phenomenal.

Shami has 142 wickets in Tests and close to 100 in ODIs making him a useful hand.

Ishant Sharma is the most senior member of the bowling squad with 267 Test wickets and 115 ODI  victims.

Bumrah’s career best figures of 6-33 has made him a talking point in Australia. He is known to possess a deadly yorker in his ammunition. The dismissal of Shaun Marsh at the MCG with a slower beauty, the last delivery before lunch, surprised Shaun who was trapped in front of the wicket. Slower balls are used mostly in the shorter formats of the game but Bumrah was advised by Rohit Sharma to experiment and it worked.

Bumrah mastered his yorker by bowling at skateboard in his home in Gujarat.