Australia showed plenty of aggression in the field but India still held the upper hand at 2-135 at tea on Saturday’s second day of the fourth and final Test.
India trail Australia by 127 runs with eight first-innings wickets in hand.
Opener Murali Vijay is on 54 and the 39-year-old Mumbai master Sachin Tendulkar has scratched his way to 12 not out off 30 balls on a turning pitch in Delhi’s hot sun.
India had raced to 0-59 off 14 overs at lunch and looked untroubled.
The home side reached their hundred in the 25th over with four overthrows in comical style when Mitchell Johnson’s return went over wicketkeeper Matthew Wade’s head.
Next ball, James Pattinson bowled a wide down legside which went for four byes.
The tourists broke through, however, in the following over when spinner Nathan Lyon bowled Cheteshwar Pujara for 52 at 1-108.
Lyon trapped Virat Kohli lbw for one in his next over. The Australians gave the talkative Kohli a few words of encouragement which might come under scrutiny from the match referee.
Tendulkar looked out lbw to Lyon for one but Australia’s appeal was rejected.
At the other end, Vijay flinched like a frightened tailender against some hostile short-pitched bowling from Johnson.
Tailender Peter Siddle top-scored in Australia’s 262 on Saturday with a determined knock of 51 – his maiden Test half-century.
No.9 batsman Siddle shared half-century partnerships with Steve Smith (46) and Pattinson (30) after Australia had been 7-136.
Offspinner Ravi Ashwin claimed 5-57, notching his fourth five-wicket haul of the series.
India lead the four-match series three-nil.
TV commentator and former Australian skipper Allan Border said of the lbw appeal against Tendulkar: “It definitely pitched in line and it wasn’t going over the stumps.”