In-form teams gear up for sequel
Match facts
Sunday June 21Start time 10.30 local (0930 GMT)
Big Picture
So they meet again. The two finalists from the 50-over World Cup in Australia - which England won by four wickets - will face each other in the World Twenty20 final at Lord's on Sunday. Both England and New Zealand are unbeaten in the tournament and put in such strong performances in the semi-finals that it is hard to predict a favourite. Though home advantage isn't a big factor in Twenty20, England can claim to have a slight edge over New Zealand.England's strength is their batting, led by world No. 1 Claire Taylor - whose unbeaten 76 off 53 balls took her side into the final - and captain Charlotte Edwards. New Zealand, on the other hand, have a very tight bowling unit, with 25-year-old Sian Ruck emerging as a great future talent. New Zealand's batting, however, hinges somewhat on the hard-hitting Suzie Bates and captain Aimee Watkins. If they fail, the team looks very fragile.
Both teams showed in the semi-finals that Twenty20, a game of big hits and fast action, is suited to women and can be a format used to make the game more popular. They repeatedly cleared the boundary and dived and threw balls in with accuracy. A close final on Sunday could set up an interesting rivalry for the future and, more importantly, a precedent for women's curtain-raiser matches in bilateral series.
Form guide
(last five completed matches, most recent first)
New Zealand WWWWL
England WWWWW
Watch out for...
Claire Taylor: She's in the form of her life and was named one of Wisden's Five Cricketers of the Year. Her unbeaten half-century in the semi-final helped England overhaul Australia's 162 with ease. Expect a big contribution from her.Suzie Bates: New Zealand's reply to Taylor is the 21-year-old opener who can tear apart a bowling attack. However, she looked out of touch in the semi-final against India, struggling to find the gaps, and scored a 24-ball 15. New Zealand will need her to click if they are to hope to get past England this time around.
Holly Colvin: England's left-arm spinner is the tournament's leading wicket-taker with nine from four games at an economy of 5.62.
Sian Ruck: New Zealand's left-arm seamer swings the ball into the right-handers and repeatedly bowled yorker-length deliveries in the semi-final. One of the wickets of the tournament was her dismissal of Harmanpreet Kaur in that match. The ball landed back of a length on middle and moved to take the leg stump. Ruck will be keen to keep Taylor and Co. in check.
Road to the final
England
v India: won by ten wickets. England needed just 15.4 overs to chase down India's paltry total.
v Sri Lanka: won by 71 runs Eshani Kaushalya took a career-best haul but the Sri Lankan batsmen couldn't stand up to Isa Guha and Colvin.
v Pakistan: won by 63 runs A surprisingly low total for England but Pakistan were bowled out in 16.5 overs
v Australia: won by eight wickets Thanks to an unbeaten 122-run stand, England booked their place on the big ticket with eight wickets and three balls to spare
New Zealand
v Australia: won by nine wickets A keen contest was turned into a one-sided affair as New Zealand yet again beat their Tasman neighbours in an opening game of the World Cup.
v West Indies: won by 52 runs A 94-run opening stand between Bates and Doolan set up the big win.
v South Africa: won by six wickets Cri-Zelda Brits gave the New Zealand bowlers a scare with an unbeaten half-century but with no support from the rest of the batting order, the target New Zealand had to chase remained modest.
v India: won by 52 runs India were completely outplayed by an all-round New Zealand.
Team news
England are unlikely to change the side that chased down Australia's 162 with eight wickets to spare unless injuries force them to.England: (probable) 1 Sarah Taylor (wk), 2 Claire Taylor, 3 Charlotte Edwards (wk), 4 Beth Morgan, 5 Lydia Greenway, 6 Jenny Gunn, 7 Caroline Atkins, 8 Nicki Shaw, 9 Katherine Brunt, 10 Holly Colvin, 11 Laura Marsh.
Ditto for New Zealand who will hope openers Bates and Lucy Doolan can give them a rollicking start that Watkins can consolidate on.
New Zealand: (probable) 1 Lucy Doolan, 2 Suzie Bates, 3 Aimee Watkins (capt), 4 Amy Satterthwaite, 5 Nicola Browne, 6 Sara McGlashan, 7 Sophie Devine, 8 Rachel Priest (wk), 9 Kate Pulford, 10 Sian Ruck, 11 Sarah Tsukigawa.
Stats and Trivia
- Sarah Taylor has the highest tournament average with 160.00 from three innings, with two half-centuries.
- Lucy Doolan has scored the most number of sixes - three - in an innings in the tournament.
- Isa Guha has the best economy rate - 2.83 from two games.
Quotes
"It's the biggest game of our lives tomorrow in front of our home crowd. We're desperate to win. We're dealing with the pressure very well and the girls are relaxed."
England captain Charlotte Edwards is excited at the prospect of playing at home.
"We've got that experience under our belt and everyone's a lot more relaxed this time round."
New Zealand captain Aimee Watkins is confident of a better show after her side's defeat to England in the 50-over ICC World Cup final in March.
Nishi Narayanan is a staff writer at Cricinfo