In a crucial World Cup qualifier, Saudi Arabia reignited their campaign with a hard-fought 1-0 victory against 10-man China at Riyadh's King Fahd International Stadium on Thursday. The win propels Herve Renard's side into third place in Group C, just one point behind Australia in the race for automatic qualification.

The match proved pivotal after Australia's earlier 5-1 demolition of Indonesia piled pressure on the Green Falcons. Having collected just two points from their previous four qualifiers, Saudi Arabia knew anything less than three points would severely dent their World Cup dreams - especially with an upcoming daunting trip to group leaders Japan.

The home side dominated proceedings from the outset and came agonizingly close twice in the first half. Nawaf Boushal rattled the crossbar with a curling effort in the 23rd minute, while Faisal Al-Ghamdi saw his close-range finish chalked off by VAR for handball eight minutes before halftime.

China's task became exponentially harder when Lin Liangming received his marching orders deep into first-half stoppage time for a reckless challenge that injured Saudi defender Hassan Kadesh - scorer of both goals in September's reverse fixture.

The breakthrough finally came five minutes after restart when talismanic winger Salem Al-Dawsari ended Saudi Arabia's 410-minute goal drought in qualifying. The Al-Hilal star reacted quickest to poke home after Wang Dalei could only parry Ayman Yahya's shot into the path of Saud Abdulhamid.

Despite relentless pressure, Renard's men couldn't find an insurance goal but ultimately didn't need one as they leapfrogged Indonesia and Bahrain (both on five points) while opening up daylight over China at the bottom of Group C.

Earlier results saw Japan become Asia's first qualified nation following their routine 2-0 win over Bahrain - maintaining their perfect record and nine-point cushion atop the standings with three matches remaining.

The victory sets up a fascinating climax to Group C where second-placed Australia (10 points) now have both Indonesia (7) and resurgent Saudi Arabia (9) breathing down their necks. With direct qualification spots going to top two teams, every point becomes precious heading into Tuesday's critical fixtures where Saudi visit Japan while Australia host Palestine.