South Africa beat Sri Lanka by five wickets in a one-day international at the WACA in Perth on Tuesday.
Sri Lanka were bowled out for just 222 in the 48th over of their innings as opener Sanath Jayasuriya top-scored with a brilliant 86 from only 65 balls.
South Africa reached their target with 4.5 overs to spare. In-form opener Boeta Dippenaar held the innings together with 87 from 94 deliveries.
The result ensured Australia go through to the best-of-three finals series with South Africa needing to win just one of their last three matches to claim the other spot ahead of Sri Lanka.
Earlier, South African captain Graeme Smith turned from part-time spinner to strike bowler on Tuesday, taking three wickets for 30 runs to begin Sri Lanka's spectacular collapse.
Jayasuriya smashed 86 from 65 balls in a 94-run opening partnership with Jehan Mubarak to give Sri Lanka a strong start, but Smith took three wickets within four overs to begin a decline which ended with Sri Lanka's dismissal in the 48th over.
Mubarak was out for 31 in the 16th over, bowled by Smith, to end a partnership in which both openers had seemed to score effortlessly. Jayasuriya, who seemed headed for his second century of the series, fell to Smith in the 22nd over when Sri Lanka was 137 after an innings decorated with three sixes and nine fours. The left-hander's dismissal ushered in the most rapid part of Sri Lanka's collapse in which his wicket and those of Mahela Jayawardene (1) and Kumar Sangakkara (16) fell in the space of three overs for the addition of seven runs.
{{/usCountry}}Mubarak was out for 31 in the 16th over, bowled by Smith, to end a partnership in which both openers had seemed to score effortlessly. Jayasuriya, who seemed headed for his second century of the series, fell to Smith in the 22nd over when Sri Lanka was 137 after an innings decorated with three sixes and nine fours. The left-hander's dismissal ushered in the most rapid part of Sri Lanka's collapse in which his wicket and those of Mahela Jayawardene (1) and Kumar Sangakkara (16) fell in the space of three overs for the addition of seven runs.
{{/usCountry}}After Jayasuriya and between the 22nd and 39th overs, when Smith bowled 10 destructive overs and reintroduced Shaun Pollock and Charl Langeveldt, Sri Lanka lost seven wickets for 42 runs. Pollock avoided Jayasuriya's assault at the start of the innings and returned in an effective second spell to claim the wickets of Russel Arnold and Nuwan Kulasekara. Pollock finished with figures of 2-17 from 10 overs.
Three run-outs, costing the wickets of Chaminda Vaas, super-sub Malinga Bandara and Tillakaratne Dilshan, were the final undoing of the Sri Lankan innings.
Vaas fell without scoring, Bandara for 11 and Dilshan was the last man out for 37, ending his defiant stand which spanned the last five partnerships of the innings.
Scoreboard:
Sri Lanka: J Mubarak b Smith 31, S Jayasuriya c Prince b Smith 86, K Sangakkara c Kemp b Langeveldt 16, M Jayawardene lbw b Smith 1, M Atapattu c Rudolph b van der Wath 7, R Arnold c Kemp b Pollock 15, T Dilshan run out 37, C Vaas run out 0, N Kulasekara c Kemp b Pollock 1, M Bandara run out 11, M Muralitharan not out 1, Extras (lb-10, w-3, nb-3) 16, TOTAL (all out in 47.4 overs) 222.
Fall of wickets: 1-94, 2-137, 3-142, 4-144, 5-159, 6-179, 7-179, 8-182, 9-216.
Bowling: Pollock 10-3-17-2, Langeveldt 10-0-50-1, Hall 9-0-48-0, Wath 8.4-0-66-1, Smith 10-0-30-3.
South Africa: G Smith c Sangakkara b Muralitharan 41, B Dippenaar c Sangakkara b Muralitharan 87, J Rudolph st Sangakkara b Bandara 25, H Gibbs b Muralitharan 4, M Boucher not out 30, J Kemp st Sangakkara b Bandara 6, A Prince not out 20, Extras: (b-4, w-6, nb-1) 11, TOTAL: (for 5 wickets, 45.1 overs) 224.
Fall of wickets: 1-84, 2-164, 3-164, 4-175, 5-190.
Bowling: Vaas 9-1-39-0, Arnold 1-0-11-0, Kulasekara 5.1-0-22-0, Muralitharan 10-0-44-3, Dilshan 7-0-44-0, Bandara 10-0-47-2, Jayasuriya 3-0-13-0.