Saudi Arabia were leading Australia midway through the second half in Melbourne as they looked certain to clinch second spot in Group D.

But three goals in three second-half minutes saw Australia surge to a memorable 4-2 win at AAMI Park, sending them into the final stage of World Cup qualification on a massive high.

Australia looked set for their first defeat on home soil in almost three years when Saudi Arabia led 2-1 with just 17 minutes left.

But just as the visitors were dreaming of keeping their hopes of qualification for Brazil alive, Harry Kewell, Alex Brosque and Brett Emerton each scored to secure the points in emphatic fashion.

Brosque finished with a brace after initially cancelling out Salem Al Dawsari's 19th-minute strike just before the break, only to see Nasser Al-Shamrani restore Saudi Arabia's advantage moments later.

It meant Oman advanced after securing a hard-fought 2-0 win over Thailand at the Sultan Qaboos Sports Complex in Oman.

Hussain Al-Hadhri gave Paul Le Guen's team a 10th-minute lead, before Oman sealed the win through Abdullah Al Muqbali's powerful left-foot effort in stoppage time.

In a dramatic finish to Group E, Bahrain missed out on qualification despite a thumping 10-0 win over Indonesia.

With Qatar trailing against Iran, Peter Taylor's men needed eight goals to progress - and had that tally after 71 minutes.

But a late header from Mohammed Kasola in Tehran saw Qatar secure a 2-2 draw against group leaders Iran, sending them through to the next stage of qualifying.

In Riffa, Indonesia's Syamsidar was red-carded after five minutes, with Bahrain's Mohammed Al Alawi and Sayed Dhiya netting hat-tricks in the win, during which their side also missed two penalties.

South Korea took top spot in a tight Group B after goals from Lee Dong-Gook and Lee Keun-Ho helped them to a tough 2-0 win over Kuwait in Seoul.

Kuwait needed a win to advance, but their loss left Lebanon to progress despite a 4-2 loss to the United Arab Emirates, who registered their first points with the win.

In Group A, a brace from Hao Junmin led China to a 3-1 win over Jordan.

Jordan were already assured a place in the next round of qualifying before their loss in Guangzhou, while Iraq sealed top spot as Younis Mahmoud's hat-trick guided them to a resounding 7-1 victory over Singapore.

Elsewhere, Tajikistan secured their first point in Group C after a 1-1 draw at home to North Korea.

Akhtam Khamroqulov and Jang Song-Hyok exchanged goals as the bottom two sides finished their qualifying campaigns, before Uzbekistan beat Japan 1-0 to consolidate top spot in the group.

Japan were still comfortable Group C runners-up, and will progress to the next stage.