LEEDS: England beat New Zealand and the rain at Headingley on Tuesday, winning the second test by 247 runs on the last day and the series 2-0.

After a second break for rain, the English picked up the last two wickets to dismiss the Kiwis for 220 in mid afternoon.

Spinner Graeme Swann took two of the last four wickets on the final day to take 6-90 and achieve a match haul of 10-132, the third 10-for of his career and first in England. He came to Headingley without having taken a test wicket at the ground.

England had New Zealand on its knees throughout a match which was shortened to four days of play after the first day was washed out. Even so, the hosts could have delivered the coup de grace on Sunday but didn't enforce the follow on.

Instead, they batted past lunch on Monday and posted an untouchable chase score of 468, 19 more than New Zealand had scored in its first three innings of the series combined.

The Kiwis clung on to stumps on Monday and hoped rain would save them on Tuesday, but despite two delays for rain, there were enough breaks for England to mop up in 21.5 overs.

It was New Zealand's ninth defeat in its last 10 tests away from home in the last 10 months.