Alyssa Healy has executed brilliant back-to-back centuries to guide her team into the semi-finals of the Women's Cricket World Cup, inspiring them to a merciless 10-wicket win over their opponents.
Healy finished not out on 113, arriving just four days after her similarly impressive 142 that defeated hosts India at the same Visakhapatnam venue. This time, she shared an unbroken 200-run opening partnership with Phoebe Litchfield (84 not out) to chase to their goal of 199 in just 24.5 overs.
“I felt I was a not at my best with the gloves, and perhaps a bit as captain as well tonight, but we’ll accept the two points and move on,” she said.
Interestingly, the utmost expertise of Thursday’s chase as the pair put on 202 runs followed perhaps the team's weakest display in the field under the captain's stewardship, with the skipper scolding herself in particular for dropping a couple of the six chances that went down.
“I was a little bit disappointed with my wicketkeeping, and I had a little bit to make up for with the bat, and fortunately got the job done,” she added.
From the time statistics was initially recorded on fielding metrics in 2013, the half-dozen dropped opportunities represented Australia’s poorest fielding display at a Women’s World Cup.
“Maybe it’s just that phase of the competition – we’ve been here a little while, and it’s something we’ll reflect on,” Healy commented.
It helped Bangladesh to manage 9-198 after they had chosen to bat first, their highest total in an One-Day International against the Aussies, with a key batter scoring the first fifty ever for the Asian side against the world champions.
But Alana King mesmeric continuous ten-over spell, in which she claimed 2-18 with four maidens, was vital to ensuring the team's target wasn’t too challenging.
Healy Delighted with Victory that Seals Knockout Spot
The Australian skipper was thrilled to learn that the triumph, which places her undefeated side at the top of the standings on nine points after four wins and a abandoned match, secures them a place in the last-four. “That's fantastic,” she exclaimed.
The experienced captain sped to her century off just 73 balls, the fastest hundred of the World Cup, and ended with 20 fours off the 77 balls she faced as she accelerated from Litchfield later in the knock after they had gone almost boundary-for-boundary towards their half-centuries.
The Opener Shines with Maiden World Cup Fifty
The young batter Litchfield struck 12 fours and a six, reaching to her first World Cup half-century off 46 deliveries soon after her partner reached hers off 43. They went on to record the third-best stand by any Australian duo at a World Cup event.
Earlier, during the sluggish fielding effort, the captain dropped the simplest of chances off a teammate and also failed to grasp a difficult skied one off Annabel Sutherland. Annoyingly, she also take a clear catch off Brown but failed to review when the umpire rejected their shout.
The reinstated Brown sent down the fastest balls at the tournament so far but was nonetheless the team's most expensive bowling option, conceding 0-52 off her nine overs.
Spin Attack Excel as King Leads
In contrast, the spinners thrived, led by King, whose performance could have been more successful if a fielder hadn’t missed one in the slips.
Fellow spinners Wareham (2-22 off seven) and Ash Gardner (2-48 off nine) both contributed, while Sutherland strengthened her standing as the competition's leading wicket-taker with her 2-41, bringing her tally to 13.
Rubya Haider’s 44 and Mostary’s not out 66 runs off 80 balls took Bangladesh to their highest-ever score against the Aussies, but the total was rendered straightforward by a side who had chased down 330 runs against the Indian side a few days earlier.
“It’s always nice when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a World Cup,” remarked player-of-the-match King. “No doubt it doesn’t stop here. We look forward to going back to Indore to take on the English team and South Africa.”
