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Results Based News

England on course to draw

Author: Brandon Barker
Date: 10/03/2009

England need an unlikely final-day surge if they are to upset betting predictions and win the fifth Test and level the series against West Indies.

The tourists reached 80-3 at close of play on day four in Trinidad and have a lead of 82 runs.

Andrew Strauss' side trail 1-0 in the five-game programme and must win this match to square the series.

England lost two wickets in the first six overs of their second innings but, with Kevin Pietersen still at the crease unbeaten on 34, retain hope of scoring fast runs on the final morning before putting the West Indies in to bat.

Earlier, Shivnarine Chanderpaul (147 not out) and Brendan Nash (109) extended their solid and potentially series-winning partnership to 234 as the Windies reached 544 all out in their first innings.

In the women's game, England continued their impressive start to their World Cup campaign with a nine-wicket victory over India in Sydney.

Having dismissed India for 169, Caroline Atkins and Claire Taylor both made 69 in a 125-run stand as England cruised to victory with more than 11 overs to spare.

In the final round of qualifying for snooker's World Championship, two-time finalist Matthew Stevens was knocked out at The Crucible in Sheffield.

Welshman Stevens, who lost both the 2000 and 2005 finals, was beaten 10-4 by Martin Gould as he made an early exit from this year's competition.

Elsewhere, Mark Williams will be in the televised stages of the event after beating Tom Ford 10-5.

Jamie Burnett, Stephen Lee, Ricky Walden and Liang Wenbo all also progressed from the final round of qualifying.

Jenson Button was fourth fastest in his first test session behind the wheel of his new Brawn GP Formula One car.

Button had faced a season on the sidelines had a resolution not been found for the future of the Honda team.

Honda's decision to pull out of the sport at the end of last season had left the Briton potentially without a drive for the 2009 campaign.

But after the team was saved following a buyout led by former Ferrari technical director Ross Brawn, Button is delighted to be given a second chance.

The BMW Sauber of Nick Heidfeld, Ferrari's Kimi Raikkonen and Toyota's Jarno Trulli were all quicker than Button, but the Briton was impressed with the speed of his new car around the Jerez circuit in Spain.

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