Australia stumble after Tendulkar double ton

India grabbed three Australian second innings wickets to leave the tourists on the back foot in the second and final cricket Test on Tuesday.

After Sachin Tendulkar had made 214 to give India a slender 17-run lead, the Aussies slumped to 94-3 in their second innings by tea on the fourth day at the Chinnaswamy stadium in Bangalore.

Skipper Ricky Ponting was unbeaten on 28 and Michael Hussey was on five, with Australia just 77 runs ahead with seven wickets in hand.

Openers Shane Watson and Simon Katich put on 58, before both fell in the space of four deliveries without a run being added.

Watson was trapped leg-before by left-arm spinner Pragyan Ojha, while Katich edged a catch to wicket-keeper Mahendra Singh Dhoni in off-spinner Harbhajan Singh's next over.

Seven runs later, Michael Clarke was stumped by Dhoni off Ojha to reduce the tourists to 65-3, barely 48 runs ahead.

India, the top-ranked Test team, lead the short series 1-0 after a dramatic one-wicket win in Mohali.

Earlier, India took their overnight score of 435-5 to 495 before they were all out at the stroke of lunch in reply to Australia's 478.

Tendulkar's dismissal at 486-5 triggered a lower order collapse in which the last five Indian wickets fell for nine runs.

Tendulkar, who was on 191 overnight, reached his double century 25 minutes after the start with a quick single off Ben Hilfenhaus.

He celebrated the feat with an exquisite on-drive for four later in the same over.

It was the world batting record holder's sixth double-century and his second in four Tests, having made 203 against Sri Lanka at the Sinhalese Sports Club in Colombo in July.

The 37-year-old, who is in his 21st year in international cricket, has already notched up six three-figure knocks this year, besides making 98 in the previous Test in Mohali.

India went past Australia's total just before the morning drinks break when Tendulkar drove Peter George for a single.

He was dismissed in the second over after resumption of play when he edged an intended cut off fast bowler George onto his stumps, giving the tall South Australian a treasured first Test wicket.

The Indian's vigil at the crease lasted nearly nine hours, in which he hit 22 boundaries and two sixes.

Australia earned another wicket in the next over when Harbhajan was caught at short mid-wicket by Ponting off Watson after making four.

George claimed his second wicket when Zaheer Khan spooned an easy catch to the cover region and India slipped from 486-5 to 494-8.

Dhoni, who made 30, became Nathan Hauritz's first victim in the innings when he edged a catch to Clarke in the slips.

Hauritz then trapped last man Shanthakumaran Sreesanth leg-before three balls later to finish with two for 153 from 39.5 overs.

Left-arm fast bowler Mitchell Johnson was the most successful bowler with 3-105, while George took two wickets.