Smith's (28) ODI haul of 568 runs at 63.11 from 10 innings were enough to pip Finch (23) who scored 673 runs at 56.08 from 13 innings.
IMAGES from Day 2 of the first Test at the Gabba in Brisbane
Factbox on the five-Test Ashes series between England and Australia
Having dismissed Australia for a paltry 145 in their first innings, Pakistan stretched their lead to a daunting 281 by stumps on day two with Zaman's 66 and an unbeaten 54 by Ali taking them to 144-2.
'If there were ever a PR exercise to fix the seemingly irreparable image of Australian cricket in the aftermath of the most notorious on-field scandal in recent memory, then this is it,' observes Dhruv Munjal.
Despite the pair making certain of selection, doubts remain in other areas of captain Tim Paine's team, with opener Matt Renshaw picking up a head injury after being struck by the ball during the tour game that ended on Tuesday.
Australia made a good start before a dramatic collapse saw them slip from 144 for two in the run chase to be 207 all-out.
A few bruised egos will eye redemption when India square off against Australia in the second Test in Melbourne from Saturday, ready to bounce back in skipper Ajinkya Rahane's hour of reckoning after their batting debacle in the series opener in Adelaide.
Fast bowler Mitchell Starc picked up his second five-wicket haul in the match to lead Australia to a comprehensive 366-run victory in the second Test against Sri Lanka and a 2-0 series win.
Denly fell six runs short of his maiden Test century and Ben Stokes made a sparkling 67 in bright sunshine at The Oval to put England in a strong position to level the series at 2-2.
Batsmen Aaron Finch, Shaun Marsh, Peter Handscomb and all-rounder Mitchell Marsh were all dropped from the squad that lost a home Test series against India for the first time.
Former captain Smith, who has endured boos from the home crowds for his role in last year's ball-tampering scandal but has responded by piling up 671 runs in five innings, said it was incredibly special to retain the Ashes in England, something Australia have not done for 18 years.
Purnendu Maji and Srinivas Bhogle list the Most Valuable Players during the India-Australia ODI series.
Former Test skipper Allan Border says that if Australia take the last eight English wickets on the final day of the fourth Ashes Test on Sunday and retain the coveted urn, the credit can go only to one man -- Steve Smith.
Under-pressure Australia batsman Usman Khawaja is "frustrated" after failing to convert a number of starts in the Ashes series but insists his batting is in a good place as he looks for form in the tour match against Derbyshire on Thursday.
In the cold light of defeat and without Smith's large shadow, Australia's batsmen have nowhere to hide and most head to Old Trafford in dire form.
Smith's condition worsened and Cricket Australia (CA) confirmed he is not fit to play in the third Test, which starts on Thursday.
Waugh did not find any problems with Archer's stamina either after the Barbados-born 24-year-old bowled 44 overs and took 5-91 at Lord's.
Compulsory neck guards on helmets for Australian cricketers are "not far away", the national team's sports medicine chief said on Monday after Jofra Archer's snorter felled Steve Smith during the second Ashes Test.
"Out on the field Jofra has clearly made a big impact," England captain Joe Root said.
His loss for even part of the series would be a huge blow to a team already missing so much batting experience because of the Cape Town ball-tampering scandal.
According to Steve Smith, the key to India's victory was their partnerships in the middle.
Their confidence soaring high after five Test wins in a row, Australia skipper Time Paine says they can't wait to host India for a "mouth-watering" series later this year but revenge is certainly not on their minds. Australia had suffered their first ever Test series against India at home in the summer of 2018-19 when they missed prolific batsmen Steve Smith and David Warner, who were serving bans following a ball-tampering scandal that shook world cricket.
Pujara has been criticised for his ultra-defensive approach in the series so far and instead of propping up his team's response to Australia's first innings total
Chasing a record 468 for victory, New Zealand were teetering at 31 for two at the break with Tom Latham 10 not out and Ross Taylor unbeaten on five. Images from Day 4 of the first Test between Australia and New Zealand in Perth on Sunday.
Images from the first ODI between England and Australia, at Old Trafford in Manchester, on Friday
Australia maintained their perfect record against the south Asians on home soil and continued their recent good form in Tests since retaining the Ashes in England.
Pakistan, who have lost 13 consecutive Tests in Australia, were in big trouble at 39 for three when rain forced an early end
Chappell still believes that Australia might have a slight edge in Test matches
Left chasing shadows in the first two games, a listless Indian team would most certainly tweak its bowling combination in order to avoid a second successive clean-sweep when it takes on Australia in the third and final ODI, in Canberra, on Wednesday.
Cheteshwar Pujara is confident that history will repeat itself in Australia this time.
The tourists were left on 20-2 after seven overs going into the second day.
Victory in the fourth Test at Old Trafford meant the Australians could not lose the series and the 2-2 scoreline meant they retained the urn.
'I think there'll be a huge fallout from this (defeat). There's not too many times that you lose to the second or third (choice) side.'
Usman Khawaja found his scoring touch and fast bowler Mitchell Starc returned to his fiery best as Australia moved within sight of victory in the second Test against Sri Lanka at the Manuka Oval on Sunday.
Test cricket can be pleasing to the eye if it is played on good pitches, says batting great Sachin Tendulkar, terming the 22-yard strip the longest format's "heart" and key to its revival.
England batting coach Graham Thorpe said they will not give up hope of saving the third Test against Australia, but a woeful batting display from the hosts on Friday left them with a mountain to climb to regain the Ashes.
The Australia batsman has overtaken New Zealand captain Kane Williamson and is now only nine points behind India skipper Virat Kohli.
Spinners Ravindra Jadeja and Kuldeep Yadav left Australia reeling on 236/6.
Root, Williamson, Rizwan and Afridi nominated for ICC Men's Cricketer of Year
