Australia booked a place in the semi-finals after beating Fiji Bati 36-22 in Brisbane, despite trailing 16-12 after 45 minutes.
Captain James Tedesco and debutant Sam Walker helped the Kangaroos recover, with their semi-final set for Sunday, November 8 at Allianz Stadium, alongside a Jillaroos match.
New Zealand and Fiji will contest the remaining Pool A semi-final place on Saturday at Cbus Super Stadium.
The Kiwis surged past Cook Islands 82-16 after their Round 1 defeat to Australia, with Jamayne Isaako scoring 38 points, a Test-match record for a Kiwi.
Ronaldo Mulitalo, Casey McLean and debutant Tanner Stowers-Smith each scored twice; Stowers-Smith also made 177 run metres and seven tackle breaks.
With both New Zealand and Fiji on one win and one loss, their Gold Coast meeting will determine which side stays in contention.
In Pool B and C, Samoa and Tonga recorded big wins ahead of their Round 3 meeting at CommBank Stadium.
England kept their title hopes alive by defeating France 82-0, extending their winning run against them to 24 consecutive Tests.
Herbie Farnworth scored a hat-trick, while Dom Young made 11 tackle breaks.
England must beat the Kumuls next week, then hope Tonga defeats Samoa by a healthy margin to have a chance of reaching the semi-finals.
A Samoa victory would leave Tonga and England level on four points, with Tonga advancing through its Round 1 win over England in Perth.
Tournament rules use the head-to-head result to rank a tied team from Group B against one from Group C on the combined ladder.
Tonga's Latu Fainu received a warning after an early guilty plea for a Grade 1 careless high tackle; a panel finding would bring a one-match ban.
Fiji's Mitchell Prest faces a one-match ban after an early plea for the same grade of offence, or two matches if found guilty at a panel.