England chase first World Cup final win over Australia
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- England have lost all six Women's World Cup finals against Australia across both white-ball formats, most recently the 2022 final in New Zealand.
- The 2025 Ashes ended in a 16-0 whitewash, prompting the ECB to appoint Charlotte Edwards as head coach after criticism over England's fitness, fielding, attitude and perception.
- Edwards called this T20 World Cup the tournament she'd be judged on; England responded by going unbeaten through the group stage and beating South Africa in the semi-final.
- England have lost both meetings with Australia since the Ashes — a six-wicket defeat at the October World Cup and a five-wicket warm-up loss before this tournament.
- Former England bowler Katherine Sciver-Brunt said Australia "can defeat you before you've even started" and called facing them "the biggest fight."
- Australia's Ellyse Perry and Phoebe Litchfield both acknowledged England look "different" under Edwards, while spinner Sophie Ecclestone declared: "We know they're a great team, but so are we."
- The final is at Lord's on 5 July at 15:30 BST, with ball-by-ball commentary on BBC Sounds and the BBC Sport website and app.
Why it matters: Edwards was hired specifically to end England's cycle of inferiority to Australia, and this final at Lord's is the first test of whether the rebuild holds against the team that inflicted the 16-0 Ashes. An England win ends a 0-6 World Cup final drought against Australia and validates the ECB's coaching change; a loss confirms that Australia's psychological edge survives contact with Edwards' methods.
