The series secured, now for the whitewash. Australia marked captain Ricky Ponting's return to the side with a crushing seven-wicket success over England in the fourth match at Lord's on Saturday night.
A pattern established at The Oval was followed almost to the letter at Lord's, the only difference being the key roles were performed by new faces.
After rolling England for a modest 220 thanks to man of the match Brett Lee's ninth five-wicket haul in the 50-over game, Australia claimed victory with a whopping 38 balls to spare.
Vice-captain Michael Clarke top-scored with an effortless 62 not out after Tim Paine's maiden international half-century and 48 from Ricky Ponting ensured Australia avoided the booby traps which befell England.
"The next game's very important, but the chance to win the next three is something we'll certainly be eyeing off," Lee said.
The Poms were again beleaguered by the same problems which have crippled their ODI campaign, this time on a wicket which early on played faster than any deck hitherto produced this series.
Captain Andrew Strauss, with a crisp 63 off 75 balls, laid the foundation for his team to construct a fortress but instead watched as nothing more intimidating than a straw hut was erected.
"I'm doing relatively well but I'm as culpable as anyone," Strauss said. "Getting out for 60 is no good. I'm not enjoying getting 60, let's put it that way."
A resurgent Lee was the chief wrecker, triggering a lower-order collapse with his 150kmh-plus thunderbolts.
In a devastating nine balls, the speedster, whose Ashes campaign was cruelled by injury, captured three wickets in the closing overs to finish with the excellent figures of 5-49.
His burst ensured England committed one of limited-overs' cricket's cardinal sins - failing to bat out its full complement of overs. And by 21 balls as well.
Off-spinner Nathan Hauritz's contribution of 2-23 from 10 overs, while not as eye-catching as Lee's, was undeniably important.
He helped wrest the early ascendancy from the Poms, who were cruising on 1-96 in the 19th over, by snaring the key wicket of Strauss and Ravi Bopara.
It started an eerily familiar chain of events.
Either through a lack of gumption or ability, or perhaps a liberal dose of both, England's collection of one-day misfits did their best to splutter like a Holden Kingswood.
Matt Prior made a non-descript 29 before being yorked by Lee then Eoin Morgan, on 13, was brilliantly stumped down the leg side by Paine off a wide from Nathan Bracken.
Lee struck twice in three balls in the 44th over, shattering the stumps of Luke Wright and Stuart Broad, then consigned Rashid to a similar demise.
Thankfully, the farcical running between the wickets which have become the trademark of Owais Shah's game eluded him. Unfortunately, so too did the late flurry of runs he was well placed to steal.
Upon reaching 39, Shah mistimed a waist-high full toss from Shane Watson in the 45th over, and during England's batting power play, and holed out lamely to Callum Ferguson on the edge of the circle.
Australia was rarely troubled in its run chase.
It wiped 51 off the equation before losing a wicket - Shane Watson lbw to Tim Bresnan for 26.
Paine added 57 at close enough to a run a ball with Ponting before top-edging a sweep shot off Rashid, who bowled a series of half-trackers in his first match since starring in a losing cause in the series-opener.
Ponting, showing no signs of rust in his first hit in nearly three weeks, departed in the 35th over, but the sting had well and truly left the game by then.
The gap between England and Australia continues to widen but the walls are closing in on Strauss and his team.
"We've had some partnerships but no telling partnerships and no telling scores," he said. "The batting group has got to be better. It's as simple as that."