The fourth one-day international between Australia and Sri Lanka was abandoned after rain halted play on Sunday with the tourists chasing 223 runs to take the series.

Sri Lanka needed 209 more runs off 46.4 overs with all their wickets in tact when the umpires took the players off the Sydney Cricket Ground. Skipper Mahela Jayawardene was on four and Tillakaratne Dilshan nine.

Bowled out for 74 runs inside 27 overs in Friday's match at Brisbane, Australia wobbled again before reaching 222-9 at the Sydney Cricket Ground. Mitchell Starc hit a career-best 52 not out off 37 balls from number nine as Australia had to rally from 130-6 and Sri Lanka were 14 for no wicket from 3.2 overs before rain forced the umpires to take the players off. Nuwan Kulasekara was the pick of the bowlers with 3-30 off his 10 overs.

"The outfield is still quite wet so unfortunately..." said a disappointed Australian skipper Michael Clarke. Sri Lanka have routed Australia in the last two games to seize a 2-1 lead in the five-match series. The final leg will be played in Hobart on Wednesday. "We've got a chance to level the series," Clarke said. The match was abandoned two hours later because of a wet outfield, leaving the home side unable to win the five-match series. Sri Lanka head to Hobart for Wednesday's final match with a 2-1 lead.

"We have to take the umpires' judgment," Clarke said. "Everybody's disappointed it wasn't a full game but it means Hobart's going to be a challenge and we'll be trying to level the series." Clarke said his team needed to figure out how to combat the seamer, who was also man-of-the-match in Brisbane. "He's bringing the ball back in to the right-handers and away from the left-handers," Clarke said. "That's always tough but we'll all look at our games individually and work out a plan to him."

scoreboard

AUSTRALIA:

D Warner lbw T Perera 60

P Hughes c Chandimal b Kulasekara 1

M Clarke lbw Kulasekara 20

D Hussey c Thirimanne b Malinga 1

G Bailey c T Perera b Herath 22

M Wade c Kulasekara b T. Perera 31

M Henriques lbw Herath 3

M Johnson lbw Malinga 10

M Starc not out 52

C McKay b Kulasekara 2

X Doherty not out 10

EXTRAS: (1b, 7lb, 2w) 10

TOTAL: (9 wickets; 50 overs) 222

FOW: 1-4, 2-50, 3-53, 4-93, 5-125, 6-130, 7-145, 8-166, 9-182

BOWLING: Mathews 10-1-50-0, Kulasekara 10-2-30-3, Malinga 10-2-33-2, T Perera 10-0-64-2, Herath 10-0-37-2

SRI LANKA:

M Jayawardene not out 4

T Dilshan not out 9

EXTRAS: (1w) 1

TOTAL: (no wickets; 3.2 overs) 14

BOWLING: McKay 2-0-13-0, Starc 1.2-0-1-0

TOSS: Australia

UMPIRES: Richard Kettleborough (ENG) and Paul Reiffel (AUS)