Australia face an uphill battle to save the second Test after closing day two on 102-4 in reply to India's first innings score of 469 in Mohali. From an overnight 311-5, India were all out for 469, with Sourav Ganguly, who retires at the end of the series, making 102 for his 16th Test century.
Mahendra Dhoni hit four sixes in an entertaining 92, but was last man out. Australia plunged to 17-2 and then 62-3 before debutant Amit Mishra removed Michael Clarke in the final over.
The leg-spinner, who also bowled Simon Katich for 33, bowled a perfect googly from around the wicket into Clarke's pads to give umpire Asad Rauf one of the easiest lbw decisions he will ever see. Clarke had looked one of Australia's most comfortable batsmen, but he was gone for 23.
India will want to remove Michael Hussey (37 not out) early on day three, after Dhoni missed two outside chances to catch him - on six and 25. Umpire Rudi Koertzen then reprieved the left-hander two runs later when replays suggested the excellent Zaheer Khan had pinned him lbw.
Thursday had been all about Sachin Tendulkar, who hit his 50th Test fifty and was finally out for 88 in becoming the first man to 12,000 Test runs - overhauling Brian Lara's record aggregate early in his innings. All the attention on Tendulkar was forgotten when play resumed on Friday, however, with a Test match to be won and neither team holding a major advantage.