Alyssa Healy has delivered outstanding back-to-back hundreds to lead her team into the semi-finals of the World Cup, motivating them to a commanding 10-wicket victory over Bangladesh.
Healy remained not out on 113 runs, arriving just a few days after her equally brilliant 142-run knock that saw off the Indian team at the same Visakhapatnam venue. This time, she shared an undefeated double-century opening partnership with Phoebe Litchfield (84no) to race to their goal of 199 in just under 25 deliveries.
“I thought I was a little bit poor behind the stumps, and perhaps a little bit as captain as well today, but we’ll take the win and move on,” she said.
Interestingly, the utmost professionalism of the day's chase as the duo added 202 runs came after perhaps the team's weakest display in the fielding department under Healy’s stewardship, with the skipper criticizing herself in especial for dropping two of the half-dozen catches that went down.
“I felt somewhat let down with my wicketkeeping, and I had a little bit to make up for with the bat, and luckily got the job done,” she added.
From the time data was first recorded on fielding performance statistics in 2013, the six dropped catches represented Australia’s poorest fielding showing at a World Cup tournament.
“Perhaps it’s just that phase of the tournament – we’ve been here a while, and it’s an issue we’ll reflect on,” the captain commented.
It helped Bangladesh to eke out 9-198 after they had opted to bat first, their highest score in an One-Day International against Australia, with Sobhana Mostary scoring the first half-century ever for the Bangladeshi team against the world champions.
But Alana King mesmeric continuous ten-over spell, in which she took 2-18 with four maiden overs, was vital to ensuring the team's target remained manageable.
Healy Delighted with Victory that Confirms Knockout Place
Healy was pleased to discover that the triumph, which places her unbeaten side at the top of the standings on nine points after four victories and a abandoned match, secures them a place in the last-four. “That's fantastic,” she said.
The experienced skipper sped to her century off just 73 balls, the quickest century of the World Cup, and finished with 20 boundaries off the 77 balls she confronted as she pulled away from Litchfield in the latter stages in the innings after they had gone almost shot for shot towards their fifties.
The Opener Shines with First Tournament Fifty
Left-hander Phoebe Litchfield struck 12 fours and a six, reaching to her first tournament half-century off 46 deliveries soon after Healy reached hers off 43. They went on to achieve the third-best stand by any Aussie duo at a Women’s World Cup.
Earlier, during the sluggish fielding effort, Healy spilled the simplest of edges off a teammate and also was unable to grasp a difficult skied one off Annabel Sutherland. Annoyingly, she also did take a clear catch off Brown but didn’t have it reviewed when the official rejected their appeal.
The recalled Darcie Brown sent down the quickest balls at the tournament so far but was still the Aussies’ costliest bowling option, conceding 0-52 off her nine overs.
Spin Attack Thrive as King Stars
Instead, the slow bowlers thrived, led by Alana King, whose performance could have been even more productive if a fielder hadn’t dropped one in the slip cordon.
Fellow spin bowlers Wareham (2-22 off seven overs) and Ash Gardner (2-48 off nine) both chipped in, while Sutherland consolidated her standing as the competition's leading wicket-taker with her 2-41, bringing her tally to thirteen.
Rubya Haider’s 44 runs and Mostary’s not out 66 off 80 deliveries took Bangladesh to their record total against the Australians, but the target was rendered straightforward by a side who had chased down 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,” said star performer Alana King. “Certainly it won't end here. We anticipate returning to Indore to take on England and South Africa.”
