England women win top team award

The England women's team have been named Team of the Year at the Sunday Times Sportswomen of the Year Awards for the second time in four years.

The award, which was presented to four members of the team by Lawrence Dallaglio at Lord's, was won on the back of the team's magnificent performances throughout 2008. England retained the Ashes in Australia in February and then beat New Zealand, West Indies, South Africa and India in one-day series throughout the year. They are currently on a run of 14 ODIs unbeaten.

"It's absolutely brilliant to be recognised at an awards ceremony like this one," Claire Taylor, who currently tops the ICC women's batting rankings, said. "It's a great achievement."

"I'm really thrilled for everyone involved," Mark Lane, the teams' coach, said. "We appreciate all the hard work that everyone puts into the women's game and to win such a prestigious award as this puts the England team right in the spotlight. This award also highlights all the hard work that people at all levels of the game from Chance to Shine through to county coaches put in to achieve results."