Indian captain Jasprit Bumrah is forced out with an injury on Day Two of the fifth Test but Australia failed to cash in.
India rejected captain Jasprit Bumrah to leave Australia on 181 and reach 141 for six to take a commanding lead of 145 on the second day of the fifth Test.
On a day of high drama at the sun-drenched Sydney Cricket Ground, Bumrah took the first wicket to get India going but left with the team doctor just after lunch to have his back checked after he was ill.
Prasidh Krishna (3-42), Mohammed Siraj (3-51) and Nitish Kumar Reddy chipped in with their captain's brilliant bowling spell to defeat Australia and chase India to a paltry four-run lead at Tea.
There was plenty of spice in the wicket, however, with paceman Scott Boland taking 4-42 in the last over to add a four-wicket haul on Fridayas Australia jumped on top of the Indian batting and dug deep into the middle.
Rishabh Pant threw off the shackles and took a stunning 28-ball knock at half-time to stop the rot, but he too departed for 61 in the final over, Australia skipper Pat Cummins getting his 14th wicket of the day.
There was time for Boland to take his fourth man in the form of Nitish Kumar Reddy, leaving Ravindra Jadeja, who was eight before he got out, and Washington Sundar, unbeaten with six, at the end of the game.
“As many runs as possible would be good for us,” said Krishna when asked how the Indian players would be able to defend, without Bumrah.
“We don't really know how the wicket is doing. It's going up, it's going down. If you can be aggressive, there is risk, but you get a quick reward. “
Australian coach Andrew McDonald attributed the “generational” bowling ability of both teams to the drop in wickets and said his plans for Day Three were straightforward.
“First and foremost, we have four wickets to get, so we will try to reduce it as much as possible,” he told reporters.
“There's a long way to go … so we'll see what happens.”
A sunshine crowd of 47,257 in Sydney got their money's worth as the pace shifted, as has been the case in the series, which Australia lead 2-1.
Opener Beau Webster, whose 57 was Australia's highest scorer, enjoyed a blistering fifty when he removed Shubman Gill for 13 later in the day to take his first Test wicket.
Virat Kohli, who stood in as India's captain after Bumrah's departure, was booed for what would be his final innings in Australia, and was delighted to return to the boundary rope after Boland caught him in the sack for a nervous six minutes.
Boland is becoming Australia's cult hero and perhaps the biggest roar came when he bowled a peach to get off Yashasvi Jaiswal's off-stump to end a thrilling innings on 22.
The Indian fans were also in for a treat, starting with Bumrah dismissing Marnus Labuschagne in the morning to take 32 wickets at an average of 13.06.
Krishna too had the Indian flag flying as he got Steve Smith caught in the sack for 33 to end a 57-run fifth-wicket partnership with Webster and leave the former Australian captain just short of 10,000 Test runs.
India, who lost captain Rohit Sharma for the match, need to win in Sydney to complete the series and retain the Border-Gavaskar Trophy.
Australia's victory not only seals the series but also a place in the final of the World Test Championship at Lord's in London, United Kingdom, against South Africa in June.