Alyssa Healy has executed outstanding consecutive hundreds to guide her team into the semi-finals of the World Cup, driving them to a commanding 10-wicket victory over their opponents.
Healy remained unbeaten on 113, arriving just four days after her similarly stellar 142 that saw off the Indian team at the identical Visakhapatnam venue. This time, she combined in an undefeated 200-run opening partnership with Phoebe Litchfield (84 not out) to dash to their target of 199 in just 24.5 overs.
“I felt I was a not at my best behind the stumps, and probably a bit as skipper as well tonight, but we’ll accept the two points and progress,” she said.
Interestingly, the supreme professionalism of the day's run-chase as the pair added 202 runs followed possibly the team's shoddiest performance in the fielding department under the captain's stewardship, with the captain criticizing herself in particular for dropping a couple of the six catches that were missed.
“I was a little bit disappointed with my wicketkeeping, and I needed to compensate with the bat, and fortunately got the job done,” Healy continued.
From the time statistics was first recorded on fielding metrics in the year 2013, the half-dozen missed catches marked Australia’s poorest fielding showing at a Women’s World Cup.
“Perhaps it’s just that phase of the tournament – we’ve been here a little while, and it’s something we’ll review,” the captain commented.
This allowed Bangladesh to manage 9-198 after they had opted to bat, their best-ever score in an One-Day International against the Aussies, with a key batter compiling the maiden half-century ever for the Bangladeshi team against the world champions.
But Alana King mesmeric continuous 10-over spell, in which she took two wickets for 18 runs with four maiden overs, was crucial to making sure the team's target wasn’t too challenging.
Healy Pleased with Victory that Seals Semi-Final Place
Healy was delighted to learn that the triumph, which puts her undefeated team top of the standings on nine points after four wins and a abandoned match, guarantees them a place in the semi-finals. “That's fantastic,” she said.
The experienced skipper raced to her century off just 73 deliveries, the quickest century of the tournament, and ended with 20 boundaries off the 77 balls she faced as she pulled away from Litchfield later in the innings after they had gone practically shot for shot towards their half-centuries.
Litchfield Shines with Maiden Tournament Fifty
The young batter Phoebe Litchfield struck 12 boundaries and a six, reaching to her first tournament half-century off 46 balls soon after Healy got there off 43 balls. They went on to record the third-best stand by any Australian pair at a World Cup event.
Earlier, during the sluggish fielding display, Healy spilled the easiest of chances off Darcie Brown and also failed to hold on to a tough skied one off Annabel Sutherland. Annoyingly, she also take a clear chance off Brown but failed to review when the umpire rejected their appeal.
The recalled Darcie Brown bowled the quickest deliveries at the tournament so far but was nonetheless the Aussies’ costliest bowler, conceding 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spinners Thrive as King Leads
Instead, the spinners excelled, led by King, whose spell could have been even more productive if a fielder hadn’t missed one in the slips.
Other spin bowlers Wareham (2-22 off seven overs) and Gardner (two for 48 off nine overs) both chipped in, while Sutherland strengthened her standing as the tournament’s top wicket-taker with her two for 41, taking her total to 13.
A batter's 44 runs and Mostary’s not out 66 off 80 balls took Bangladesh to their highest-ever score against the Aussies, but the total was made to look straightforward by a team who had successfully pursued 330 runs against India a few days earlier.
“It’s always nice when you’ve got the ‘Q’ next to your name in a World Cup,” said player-of-the-match Alana King. “No doubt it won't end here. We look forward to returning to the next venue to face England and the Proteas.”
