Alyssa Healy has delivered outstanding back-to-back centuries to steer her squad into the semi-finals of the World Cup, driving them to a dominant comprehensive victory over their opponents.
Healy remained not out on 113, coming just four days after her equally impressive 142-run knock that saw off hosts India at the identical Visakhapatnam venue. This time, she combined in an unbroken double-century opening partnership with Phoebe Litchfield (84no) to dash to their target of 199 runs in just 24.5 deliveries.
“I thought I was a little bit poor behind the stumps, and perhaps a bit as skipper as well today, but we’ll take the two points and progress,” she said.
Interestingly, the utmost professionalism of Thursday’s chase as the duo added 202 followed perhaps Australia’s poorest performance in the field under Healy’s stewardship, with the captain criticizing herself in especial for spilling two of the half-dozen chances that went down.
“I was a little bit disappointed with my wicketkeeping, and I needed to compensate with the bat, and luckily succeeded,” Healy continued.
Since statistics was first taken on fielding performance metrics in the year 2013, the half-dozen missed opportunities represented the team's worst 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 an issue we’ll review,” Healy said.
This allowed Bangladesh to manage 198 for 9 after they had chosen to bat first, their highest total in an ODI against Australia, with a key batter scoring the first fifty ever for the Bangladeshi team against the reigning champions.
But the spinner's mesmeric continuous ten-over spell, in which she claimed two wickets for 18 runs with four maiden overs, was crucial to ensuring Australia’s chase remained manageable.
Healy Pleased with Victory that Seals Semi-Final Place
Healy was thrilled to discover that the triumph, which puts her undefeated side top of the standings on nine points after four victories and a wash-out, guarantees them a berth in the last-four. “That's fantastic,” she said.
The 35-year-old captain sped to her hundred off just 73 balls, the fastest century of the tournament, and ended with 20 fours off the 77 deliveries she confronted as she accelerated from her partner in the latter stages in the knock after they had gone practically boundary-for-boundary towards their fifties.
Litchfield Shines with Maiden World Cup Half-Century
Left-hander Litchfield struck 12 boundaries and a six, reaching to her first World Cup fifty off 46 deliveries soon after Healy reached hers off 43 balls. They went on to achieve the third-highest stand by any Australian pair at a World Cup event.
In the first innings, during the subpar fielding display, the captain dropped the simplest of edges off a teammate and also was unable to hold on to a tough skied one off Annabel Sutherland. Frustratingly, she also take a clear catch off Brown but failed to review when the official rejected their appeal.
The reinstated Brown sent down the fastest deliveries at the World Cup so far but was nonetheless the team's costliest bowling option, conceding 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spinners Thrive as Alana King Leads
In contrast, the spinners thrived, spearheaded by Alana King, whose performance could have been even more productive if Beth Mooney hadn’t missed one in the slip cordon.
Other spin bowlers Georgia Wareham (two for 22 off seven) and Gardner (2-48 off nine overs) both contributed, while Annabel Sutherland consolidated her position as the tournament’s top wicket-taker with her 2-41, bringing her total to 13.
Rubya Haider’s 44 and another's not out 66 off 80 balls took Bangladesh to their record total against the Australians, but the target was made to look straightforward by a side who had successfully pursued 330 runs against India a few days before.
“It’s always nice when you’ve got the ‘Q’ next to your name in a World Cup,” remarked star performer Alana King. “Certainly it won't end here. We anticipate going back to Indore to take on the English team and South Africa.”
