MUMBAI, Feb 15: England rode on captain Charlotte Edwards’ unbeaten century to beat New Zealand by four wickets and finish third in the ICC Women's World Cup at the Brabourne Stadium on Friday.
Chasing a modest 221 for victory, Edwards played a captain's knock, scoring an unbeaten 106 off 121 deliveries with the help of 15 fours to take England to 222 in 47 overs.
Apart from Edwards, Lydia Greensway (31), wicket-keeper Sarah Taylor (28) and Arran Brindle (27) also made useful contributions with the bat to guide England home.
Off-spinner Lucy Doolan was the most successful bowler for New Zealand scalping three wickets for 50 runs, while pacer Sian Ruck picked up two wickets for 20 runs.
Earlier sent into bat, Amy Satterthwaite struck a fluent 85 to guide New Zealand to 220 for eight. Left-arm spinner Holly Colvin shone with the ball for England, picking up three wickets for 31 runs while Aaran Brindle (2/38) dismissed two Kiwi batswomen.
In the other match of the day, Sri Lanka thrashed South Africa by 87 runs to finish fifth on Friday.
Batting first at the Barabati Stadium, Sri Lanka put up a decent score of 243 for seven in stipulated 50 overs with useful contributions from the middle-order.
In reply, South Africa were bundled out for a paltry 156 in only 40.1 overs with off-spinner Shashikala Siriwardene picking up four for 32.
Among the Lankan batswomen, Chamari Atapattu was the top-scorer with a patient 52 off 106 balls. She hit five boundaries. The other contributions came from Deepika Rasangika (43), Siriwardene (44) and Eshani Kaushalya (43).
While replying, barring Shandre Fritz, who scored 54, none of the other batters were able to get on with the chase as the Lankan bowlers had complete control.
Results:In Mumbai - Play-off for 3rd place
England beat New Zealand by four wickets
New Zealand 220-8 in 50 overs (Amy Satterthwaite 85, Frances Mackay 30, Nicola Browne 27 not out, Suzie Bates 21, Katie Perkins 20; Holly Colvin 3-31, Arran Brindle 2-38); England 222-6 in 47 overs (Charlotte Edwards 106 not out, Lydia Greenway 31, Sarah Taylor 28, Arran Brindle 27; Lucy Doolan 3-50, Sian Ruck 2-20)
In Cuttack - Play-off for 5th place:Sri Lanka beat South Africa by 88 runs
Sri Lanka 244-7 in 50 overs (Chamari Atapattu 52, Shashikala Siriwardene 44, Eshani Kaushalya 43, Deepika Rasangika 43; Marcia Letsoalo 2-36, Chloe Tryon 2-46); South Africa 156 all out in 40.1 overs (Shandre Fritz 54, Dane van Niekerk 26; Shashikala Siriwardene 4-32, Sripali Weerakkody 2-15, Chamani Seneviratna 2-35)
Sunday's final: Australia vs West Indies in Mumbai.—Agencies