Edwards Leads England to World Cup Third Place

England's women secured third place in the World Cup after captain Charlotte Edwards' eighth one-day international century helped overcome New Zealand by four wickets in Mumbai.

Despite beating the Kiwis on Wednesday, England missed out on defending their World Cup title in Sunday's final, but made up for it in emphatic fashion in the 3<sup>rd and 4<sup>th place play-off.

After winning and toss and putting New Zealand into bat, Holly Colvin dominated with the ball taking 3-31, including the wicket of Amy Satterwaite (85), as they completed their 50 overs on 220 for 8.

And England cruised over the line led by skipper Edwards, who made an unbeaten 106, with Laura Greenway chipping in with 31, as victory was secured with three over remaining despite the late losses of Heather Knight (0) and Jenny Gunn (1).

Arran Brindle, who took two wickets and scored 27 with the bat, said: "Losing three quick wickets wasn't ideal but Charlotte batted superbly, I should have finished the game off with her but we needed to get over the line. We played with a lot of pride out there today.

Brindle also suggested that Edwards, 33, who many feel has played in her last World Cup, showed form that could relay her departure from the game.

"Charlotte's getting better and I can't see her stopping any time soon," Brindle added. "We wanted to win today to finish third and that's what we've done, but we've got to look back on what could have been."

But in similar fashion to Wednesday's match, which came amid news that West Indies had confirmed their place in the final after beating Australia, the game was play in a subdued atmosphere.

Mistakes in the field and with the bat, which almost saw a late collapse, again highlighted England's plight in the super six stage during which they fell to tight defeats against Sri Lanka and Australia.

Sri Lanka's women's confirmed a fifth place finish with an 88-run with over South Africa.

Australia, the five-time winners, face West Indies in Sunday's final as the two-and-a-half-week event comes to a crescendo at the Brabourne Stadium in Mumbai.