Chasing a moderate target of 258, Australia lost opener Tim Paine at only four runs on the board but captain Ricky Ponting and Shane Watson took their team to victory with 49 balls remaining.
Both cracked centuries and remained not out – Ponting 111 off 115 balls with 12 fours and a six and Watson 136 from 132 balls with seven sixes and ten fours.
Ponting during his 28 th ODI hundred became only the third batsman after Sachin Tendulkar of India and Sanath Jayasriya of Sri Lanka to reach 12,000 runs in this form of cricket.
Earlier, England made remarkable recovery from 101-6 to 257 all out, thanks to a marvelous seventh wicket partnership between Luke Wright and Tim Bresnan, against Australia in the first semi-finals of the ICC Champions Trophy.
Bresnan, playing his first match in the tournament, made 80 from 76 balls with eleven fours while Wright scored 48 with two fours and two sixes. Both added 107 runs for the seventh wicket which enabled England to give Australia a fighting target of 258.
Paul Collingwood also played an impressive innings, striking five fours and a six in a brisk 34 before being caught behind by Paine off the bowling of Mitchell Johnson.
For Australia, Peter Siddle claimed three wickets for 55 while Shane Watson and Brett Lee grabbed two each and Johnson took one wicket.
Earlier, England captain Andrew Strauss won the toss and elected to bat.
England, rebounding from a 6-1 series loss at home to Australia last month, made three changes to their team.
Fast bowler Stuart Broad has a sprained buttock and his place has been taken by Tim Bresnan.
England chose a specialist wicketkeeper in Steve Davies, making his one-day international debut, with Eoin Morgan returning to the outfield after standing in for the injured Matt Prior in their two previous matches.
Batsman Ravi Bopara was dropped, along with left-arm seamer Ryan Sidebottom, who was replaced by Graham Onions while Australia named an unchanged starting eleven.
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