Australia beat England by two wickets as they achieved their highest one-day international run chase and took a 5-1 lead in the seven-match series.
In an improved England batting display in Sydney, Jonathan Trott scored 137 to set a total of 333-6 - their highest against Australia in one-dayers.
The home side's reply began positively, thanks largely to Shane Watson's 51.
England halted the hosts' progress with regular wickets, but Michael Clarke's 82 helped his side to a final-over win.
Australia's score of 334-8 is also their highest one-day total against England and the fourth highest run-chase by any side in ODI history, emphasising further the gulf that exists between these two sides.
Fuelled by their Ashes success, England came into these one-day internationals looking to build towards what seemed a genuinely realistic 2011 World Cup challenge, but due to poor form and fitness, such buoyant optimism has diminished in conjunction with their hopes of victory over these seven limited-overs matches.
Four defeats from the first five games made this, and the final encounter in Perth on Sunday, dead rubbers, but with pride to restore and World Cup starting places to secure, they remain important fixtures. And despite the defeat, the tourists can take many positives from an improved showing to that in Brisbane last Sunday.
That they were able to do so was largely thanks to Clarke, who put his recent poor form firmly behind him and built on the 54 he scored at Brisbane with a superb 82 off 70 balls.
He was ably assisted by Hussey, who scored 38 before he was caught behind by Prior off Finn - one of two wickets for the Middlesex seamer who finished with figures of 2-51 in 10 overs.
Smith - for whom Haddin was a runner - was run out by Finn for a duck to briefly raise England's hopes and Clarke fell soon after to another run out, this time by Trott, but Lee and John Hastings kept cool heads to see Australia to victory with four balls to spare.
