England clinch nail-biting World Cup victory over Australia

Katherine Brunt and Jenny Gunn formed a crucial partnership with the bat before helping England's attack, especially the superb Alex Hartley, hold firm as Australia took them right to the wire. The game ended in last-ball drama that had a huge crowd on tenterhooks at Bristol's County Ground.

England captain Heather Knight had won the toss and elected to bat, but her side's innings began tentatively, suggesting the pitch was a tad more bowler-friendly than that of their scrap with South Africa at the same venue. Lauren Winfield became a victim of the early tension, caught at short mid-wicket off Megan Schutt trying to seize the initiative.

Left-arm spinner Jess Jonassen had opened the bowling to good effect with Schutt, but the arriving Sarah Taylor inspired the first of 12 bowling changes as two typically powerful cover drives inspired a ten-run over.

Taylor has a reassuring presence at the crease, even when playing expansive strokes, and as she unfurled the usual repertoire there was just a hint of the magnificent Beaumont-Taylor combination that had run rings around South Africa. Unfortunately, the Australian bowlers have just a degree more savvy, and they were able to tighten the screw.

After another period of scarce run-scoring, up stepped off-spinner Kristen Beams to bowl Taylor with her first ball of the game. When Heather Knight hit her tenth delivery straight to Meg Lanning, England's progress was stemmed severely.

Natalie Sciver and Tammy Beaumont added 46, Beaumont weighing anchor allowing Sciver to play her naturally aggressive game. After Sciver had also found Meg Lanning at mid-off, this time, off the bowling of Elyse Villani, Danni Wyatt and Beaumont formed a similarly-styled partnership of 54.

Wyatt, who hadn't had much time at the crease in the tournament thus far, played fluently for 27 (including two sixes). But, shortly after a distraught Tammy Beaumont miscued a waist-high full toss back to Ashleigh Gardner to go for a stubborn 49, Wyatt was bowled by Jess Jonassen playing across the line.

At 175 for six, England were in real danger of crumbling to a sub-par total, but there was an invaluable partnership from two experienced England bowlers, Katherine Brunt and Jenny Gunn. Taking minimal risk at first, they built the run-rate steadily, adding 85 runs in 12.1 overs. Taking advantage of some uncharacteristically profligate bowling (Australia conceded 32 extras in the innings), both Gunn and Brunt punished bad balls while rotating the strike.

The Australian target of 260 was considered by many to be well within their reach, especially with Meg Lanning back in the line-up and Ellyse Perry in the batting form of her career. However, to do so they would have to break the Women's World Cup record chase.

Openers Sarah Bolton and Beth Mooney played contrasting knocks; Mooney found the boundary five times in her 31, while Bolton only did so once in a 26-run. Both scored at less than four per over, though, and while they provided a solid platform, the required rate was already starting to creep up when their wickets brought Perry and Lanning to the crease.

This was always destined to be the partnership that would break the game one way or the other and it started well for Australia, both players striking the ball confidently and running well between the wickets. 57 runs came in 13.3 overs at an accelerating rate and neither the Aussie captain, nor the destructive Perry, looked in any great peril until Alex Hartley produced the ball of the game.

Hartley had echoed Jess Jonassen's start by taking a wicket in her first over, but this was her finest hour. It was a peach of a ball to get Meg Lanning, bowled from a yard behind the popping crease and given plenty of flight. It drifted in slightly before turning just enough to evade Lanning's edge, and clipped the outside of off stump to send ripples of delight through the near-capacity crowd.

The atmosphere was even hotter than the scorching West Country weather by this stage, and with England getting on top the volume started to grow, a cheer for every dot ball and a groan for every boundary. Perry dominated a fourth wicket partnership of 47 with Elyse Villani before the latter was caught by Jenny Gunn at long on off Anya Shrubsole, triggering a gigantic roar from bowler and crowd alike.

Crunch time, and England's ground fielding was excellent, exemplified by captain Heather Knight at extra cover, although the catching is still an area for improvement. Anya Shrubsole had given Villani a life, putting down a fairly straight-forward chance off Hartley at mid-on, and Natalie Sciver spilled what could have turned out to be a vital chance having got her hands to an Ellyse Perry biff at deep midwicket.

The Sciver drop came in the 46th over, when Perry had 67, but Brunt returned for the 47th, bowled Alex Blackwell, and teased Perry into another skier. Again, the ball was hit high and hard to the midwicket boundary, but this time Sciver made no mistake, almost nonchalantly cupping the ball at head-height before checking her feet were just inside the boundary rope.

Perry had gone for 70, and it would be left to 'keeper Alyssa Healy and the big-hitting Ashleigh Gardner to try and steal victory from the jaws of defeat, something they very nearly achieved. Needing 42 from just 18 balls, the next four deliveries went for 15, starting with a huge six over square leg from Gardner.

The noise that greeted Healy's dismissal, trapped lbw by Hazell, was an indication both of the size of the crowd and the level of tension they were feeling. Ever-reliable, Brunt went for just six runs off the 49th over, before Jenny Gunn was trusted with the task of seeing out the win.

16 runs were need from Gunn's six balls, and the first three yielded six. Gardner found the middle again off the fourth ball of the over, but the ball dropped just inside the long-on boundary with a grateful Katherine Brunt running round to hold on to the catch. Game over, now , surely? Not quite, there was time for one more twist. Jess Jonassen crunched the penultimate ball of the game to Sciver at long-off and she fumbled on the rope.

Six to win off the last ball, then, and Jonassen made another good connection. It was enough to put a few hearts in mouths before dropping safely, 15 yards inside the midwicket boundary.

A riotous celebration, almost as much for the spectacle as for the England win, and a well-deserved player-of-the-match performance from Katherine Brunt with 45 not out and two for 42 from her nine overs. England face New Zealand next, with one foot in the semi-finals, and if Derby is treated a game half as entertaining as this one, they'll be going home happy.