Images: India vs South Africa, 1st Test, Day 4, Nagpur

India crashed to a humiliating innings and six runs defeat against South Africa in the first Test in Nagpur on Tuesday despite Sachin Tendulkar's (100) defiant ton.

Following on, India resumed on 66 for two this morning, but folded for 319 in their second essay to allow South Africa to take a 1-0 lead in the two-match series.

Tendulkar and Murali Vijay (32) started the morning well, sharing a 72-run stand.

However, after adding 30 runs to the overnight score, Vijay top-edged a Paul Harris delivery to deep backward square leg and into the hands of Morne Morkel.

S Badrinath (6) was the next to go after edging a Parnell delivery that was safely taken by Mark Boucher.

Tendulkar, meanwhile, was lucky to see his glide off Parnell grassed by Jacques Kallis in the slip cordon, when he was on 45.

Tendulkar subsequently was watchful but at the same time walloped the bad deliveries. He and Dhoni rekindled India's hopes with a steady 70-run partnership and the sparse crowd at the VCA Stadium roared in appreciation after Tendulkar reached his 46th Test century.

But the joy was shortlived as Tendulkar could not add any more runs and fell to a Harris delivery.

Tendulkar's century, his fourth against the South Africans and first at home against the Proteas, was the lone significant knock in the entire Indian innings.

Seventeen runs later, Harris scalped Dhoni, to further dent Indian hopes. Dhoni got an inside edge that hit the pad before finding the silly point fielder.

With no real hopes of saving the match, Harbhajan (39) batted with reckless abandon.

He hit Harris for back-to-back-fours and then cleared the long on ropes to score at a brisk rate before Parnell trapped him in front of the wicket.

Harbhajan's knock included six boundaries.

Wriddhiman Saha (36) tried to compensate for his first innings duck on debut with a gritty 101-ball knock, but the writing was clearly on the wall by then.

Zaheer took 57 balls for his 33, which included four boundaries and a couple of sixes.

For South Africa, Dale Steyn returned a match-haul of 10 for 108.

Hashim Amla was declared Man of the match for his match-winning 253 in the first innings.

India will now have to win the next match in Kolkata, starting on Sunday, failing which they would surrender the No 1 Test team's tag to the South Africans.