West Indies make World Cup Final

West Indies will meet Australia in the final of the Women's World Cup after they beat Australia by 8 runs to finish top of the Super Six table. It was Australia's first defeat of the tournament and it was West Indies third win on the bounce - South Africa, New Zealand and then Australia all falling to the team that had to qualify to even make the tournament in the first place. The wins over the White Ferns and the Southern Stars were the first time that West Indies have ever beaten those teams.

It meant that the day/night game between England and New Zealand was irrelevant. Neither team could make the final. They will both meet again on Friday to decide who finishes third and fourth.

When the West Indies slipped to 92/7 it seemed as though they were heading for a certain defeat, but nothing has been certain in this World Cup, and with Deandra Dottin still at the crease the Windies fought back. Even when Dottin went for another useful 60, with the score at 135, the Windies weren't done - a testament to their fighting spirit maybe, or perhaps to the fact that Australia may have felt they had done all the hard work. They added another precious 31 runs for the last two wickets, which at least gave them something to bowl at.

The early wicket of the classy Meg Lanning sent jitters through the England and New Zealand supporters, who needed Australia to win to allow their teams to fight for a place in the final. But Haynes (21), Cameron (39) and Blackwell (45) took the score to 130/4 just 35 runs short of victory and with plenty of overs to be bowled. But within 12 balls Australia had slipped to 131/7. For a while Erin Osborne(19) seemed to have things under control, but she steadily ran out of partners. Australia still seemed likely to win as they got to 156/8, but as the overs ran out so did the Aussies - Schutt run out by Daley and then Osborne caught behind to the delight of the West Indies.

West Indies celebrate as they make the WWC Final

You could see the shoulders of the England and New Zealand players drop as the news filtered through that the West Indies had won. They proceeded to go through the motions with England setting a decent target of 267 thanks to a classy knock of 88 by Sarah Taylor and another 50 for Charlotte Edwards, the England skipper. Had Taylor been caught by Lucy Doolan on 0 it would have been her fourth duck in a row for the England number one batsmen. As it was it was her first run and from there on she just got better and better. It was a shame that it had come too late to make any difference to England's fortunes in this competition.

New Zealand set about the England attack with some gusto, helped by the absence of Shrubsole, who was indisposed with a migraine; some indifferent umpiring again; and a regular smattering of full tosses from Brindle and Marsh in particular. Holly Colvin and Jenny Gunn reined the White Ferns back in, but Suzie Bates(79) and Amy Satterthwaite (103) were still there when Marsh and Brindle returned and they took full control until Katherine Brunt returned. Satterthwaite should have been given out caught behind for 56 off Brunt, but the Nepalese umpire declined to raise his finger yet again. Eventually Jenny Gunn made the breakthrough bowling Bates behind her legs to end the 133 run partnership. Satterthwaite continued to get a well-deserved 100 but when she went to a flighted ball from Danni Wyatt and a tumbling catch from Edwards New Zealand seemed to lose heart. They gradually got further behind the required run rate and continued to lose wickets and eventually ended up 15 runs short. But it was a hollow victory for a deflated-looking England side whose World Champions crown will now be worn by someone else for the next four years.

In the other game in Cuttack South Africa comfortably defeated Sri Lanka by 110 runs, having scored 227/8 with 50s for Cri-Zelda Brits and Shandre Fritz. In reply only Jayangani (63) kept her head. Dane van Niekerk took 4/17 and keeper Trisha Chetty claimed five victims behind the stumps. The two teams meet again on Friday to decide who will finish 5th and 6th.

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