by Our Sports Desk

CHARLOTTE EDWARDS’S England have the chance to go back in front in this summer’s women’s Ashes by winning the one-off Test on the captain’s home ground today.

England trail 4-2 after the three one-day internationals — but with four points available for the Test match at Canterbury, they could yet have a lead themselves before three Twenty20s complete the series at the end of this month.

The hosts made a good start to the summer but it was Australia who finished strongest in the ODIs — especially in the final match at Worcester.

Edwards said: “I thought we played well for a game and a half and (then) we let ourselves down in 10 overs.

“The first two games, I was really happy with where we were at.

“(But) I was bitterly disappointed at Worcester. We didn’t play — we didn’t even come to the party there.”

England have had time to regroup since then and their captain is confident the brief break has helped them.

“It’s been nice to get away for a couple of weeks, reflect on it, learn from it and move on,” she said.

“We haven’t got a huge amount of experience in terms of playing four-day cricket.

“We go out there in our ODI cricket and look to get wickets and score runs.

“We’ve just got to do it for an extended period of time and that’s what we’re saying to the players.

“We want them to still be positive and express themselves.”

Edwards’s opposite number Meg Lanning continued her good form with another half-century at New Road, where the hosts — including their captain, who made a rare duck when she fell to Australia’s brilliant all-rounder Elysse Perry — had no answer on the way to an 89-run defeat.

But home hopes are still high at Canterbury and Edwards said: “We’re looking forward to trying to get back into this series and four points would be fantastic right now if we can get them.”

Australia, meanwhile, can go 8-2 in front with only six more points then available — and Lanning said: “The Test match is really important.

“If either side can get a win here, that certainly puts you in the box seat.”