Ghana 1-1 Australia Australia overcame the first-half dismissal of Harry Kewell to battle for a draw against Ghana that keeps their slim hopes of reaching the World Cup second round alive.
The Socceroos, hammered 4-0 by Germany in their opening Group D game, took an early lead through Brett Holman before former Liverpool forward Kewell was shown a straight red for a handball on the goal-line and Asamoah Gyan slotted home his second penalty of the tournament.
But an inexperienced Ghana side struggled against 10 men, showing limited imagination and resorting to shot after shot from long range.
And it was Australia who came closest to winning the match when Luke Wilkshire failed to beat Black Stars goalkeeper Richard Kingston when clean through on goal.
It was an impressive display from the Australians who had been lambasted by their national press after a meek opening performance and suffered the hammer blow of having a key man sent off for the second game in a row.
The Socceroos could still emulate their 2006 effort of reaching last 16 in South Africa if they defeat Serbia in their final game on Wednesday, while Ghana need only a point against the Germans to advance.
While injuries to captain John Mensah and Isaac Vorsah forced Ghana boss Milan Rajevac to field an inexperienced centre-back pairing of Lee Addy and Jonathan Mensah, under-fire Australia coach Pim Verbeek made four changes to the side that lost to Germany with Kewell called in to lead the attack.
And Kewell was immediately in the thick of the action, going down twice inside the area in the first 10 minutes but seeing both his penalty appeals turned down by Italian referee Roberto Rosetti.
The Socceroos had reason to thank the official shortly afterwards when he awarded the free-kick from which they took the lead.
Mark Bresciano's 30-yard strike bounced awkwardly in front of Kingston, but the keeper should have done more than just parrying the ball straight in front of him. Holman reacted quickest to clip the loose ball into the top corner.
Kingston has played more for his country than his club in the last four years and his sloppy work provided another page in the catalogue of goalkeeping gaffes at this World Cup.
Ghana, the only African team to win at the tournament so far, reacted with a series of pacy attacks and they did not have to wait long for their equaliser.
Andre Ayew showed great determination to work some space for himself on the byline and produce a measured cut-back to Mensah, whose powerful goalbound shot struck Kewell on the arm.
Kewell protested that the ball had hit his chest and implored the referee to watch the replay on the big screen but when the incident was shown again it entirely vindicated the decision to award a penalty and show the Australia frontman a red card.
Gyan sent Socceroos keeper Mark Schwarzer the wrong way from the spot.
The Black Stars initially made the most of their extra man, using the full width of the pitch to stretch Australia, and Rajevac's men could have gone ahead shortly before half-time.
Portsmouth's Kevin-Prince Boateng worked his way into the box and unleashed a right-footed shot that was brilliantly tipped around the post by Schwarzer, who had to be at his best once again shortly after the break to claw away a curler from Gyan.
Ghana seemed to lose their way as the game wore on, running out of ideas and firing speculative shots from distance which were often embarrassingly off target.
The Africans' profligacy seemed to awaken their opponents' senses to the possibility that they could still win the game and the Socceroos came close on two occasions.
First Scott Chipperfield headed over the bar, and then Wilkshire found acres of space in the box, but his shot was smothered by Kingston, who was on hand to gather Josh Kennedy's follow-up effort.
But Ghana ended the game the stronger side with Mensah heading over from Sulley Muntari's cross and Schwarzer pulling off a one-handed save to keep out Quincy Owusu-Abeyie's long-range strike.
Serbia 1-0 Germany Serbia brought 10-man Germany crashing back down to earth with a narrow win in Port Elizabeth that blows qualification from Group D wide open.
An opening-game rout of Australia had German fans and critics predicting a run deep into the World Cup tournament, with national newspaper Bild declaring: "We're going to blow you all away".
But Serbia were always likely to prove a different proposition to a weak Australia side forced to play more than half an hour a man down, and after frontman Miroslav Klose had been harshly dismissed for two bookings in the first half, Germany failed to rally sufficiently to force an equaliser against Radomir Antic's stubborn side.
Liverpool-bound Milan Jovanovic proved the match-winner with a 35th-minute volley, but in truth the result was as much down to the Germans' poor finishing - not least from Lukas Podolski who missed a penalty amid a hatful of chances.
And referee Alberto Undiano Mallenco of Spain played no small part in influencing proceedings with a series of baffling decisions and yellow cards.
It means Germany, Serbia and Ghana all stand on three points ahead of the Africans' second group match against the Aussies on Saturday.
Germany, though, will feel aggrieved at a result that almost entirely centred around Klose's dismissal.
For the first half hour before that, in the face of a Serbian defence far more disciplined than the Australian backline had been on Sunday, Germany were patient and measured in attack, Podolski flashing a volley narrowly wide and playmaker Mesut Ozil again impressing.
But just a minute after referee Mallenco brandished a second yellow card to Klose - both for innocuous trips - Serbia grabbed what proved to be their winner.
The lively Milan Krasic produced a fine cross from the right that was nodded down by Birmingham City new-boy Nikola Zigic and slammed home from close range by Jovanovic.
Thereafter, with Serbia dropping deeper and deeper despite their numerical advantage, Germany controlled possession and had a series of chances to level the scores.
Sami Khedira slammed a vicious shot against the bar 16 yards out, while Podolski wasted two glorious passes from Ozil when he clipped the first wide and the second into the side-netting.
Neither chance was as good as the next, though, when he saw his tame penalty saved by Serbia keeper Vladimir Stojkovic after Nemanja Vidic's inexplicable handball in the box.
It was only Germany's second penalty miss in a World Cup outside of a shoot-out, their first by Uli Hoeness in 1974, and it proved crucial.
Playing on the counter, Serbia - much improved from a display against Ghana that did the talent in their side no justice - twice hit the woodwork, with Jankovic curling left-footed on to the foot of Manuel Neuer's post and Zigic heading on to the bar from another Krasic cross.
Unlike Germany, though, they were not made to rue their profligacy, seeing out a win that gives Antic's side a real chance of reaching the second round.
As for Joachim Loew's side, their first World Cup group-stage defeat since 1986 means only a victory over Ghana next Wednesday will guarantee them a place in the last 16.