Alyssa Healy has executed brilliant consecutive centuries to guide her squad into the semi-finals of the World Cup, inspiring them to a commanding comprehensive victory over their opponents.
The wicketkeeper-batter remained unbeaten on 113 runs, arriving just four days after her equally stellar 142-run knock that defeated the Indian team at the identical Vizag venue. This time, she combined in an undefeated double-century opening partnership with Phoebe Litchfield (84no) to dash to their target of 199 in just 24.5 deliveries.
“I felt I was a not at my best with the gloves, and probably a bit as skipper as well today, but we’ll take the two points and progress,” Healy remarked.
Ironically, the supreme professionalism of the day's run-chase as the duo added 202 runs followed possibly the team's poorest display in the fielding department under the captain's leadership, with the captain criticizing herself in particular for spilling two of the six catches that went down.
“I felt somewhat let down with my glovework, and I had a little bit to make up for with the bat, and luckily delivered,” she added.
From the time data was first taken on fielding metrics in the year 2013, the half-dozen dropped opportunities represented Australia’s poorest fielding showing at a Women’s World Cup.
“Perhaps it’s just that time of the competition – we’ve been here a while, and it’s an issue we’ll reflect on,” Healy said.
It helped the opposition to eke out 9-198 after they had opted to bat, their best-ever total in an One-Day International against the Aussies, with Sobhana Mostary scoring the maiden fifty ever for the Bangladeshi team against the reigning champions.
But Alana King spellbinding unbroken 10-over bowling performance, in which she claimed 2-18 with four maidens, was key to making sure Australia’s chase remained manageable.
Healy Pleased with Victory that Seals Knockout Spot
The Australian skipper was thrilled to discover that the victory, which puts 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 great news,” she said.
The 35-year-old captain sped to her century off just 73 deliveries, the fastest hundred of the tournament, and ended with 20 fours off the 77 balls she faced as she pulled away from Litchfield later in the innings after they had gone almost boundary-for-boundary towards their fifties.
The Opener Shines with First Tournament Half-Century
Left-hander Phoebe Litchfield struck 12 boundaries and a six, getting to her first World Cup half-century off 46 balls soon after her partner got there off 43 balls. They went on to achieve the third-highest partnership by any Australian duo at a Women’s World Cup.
Earlier, during the sluggish fielding display, the captain dropped the simplest of chances off Darcie Brown and also was unable to hold on to a tough lofted one off another bowler. Frustratingly, she also take a clean catch off Brown but didn’t have it reviewed when the umpire turned down their appeal.
The reinstated Brown bowled the quickest deliveries at the tournament so far but was nonetheless the team's most expensive bowling option, going for 0-52 off her nine overs.
Spin Attack Thrive as Alana King Leads
Instead, the slow bowlers excelled, led by King, whose performance could have been more successful if a fielder hadn’t missed one in the slip cordon.
Other spinners Wareham (2-22 off seven overs) and Gardner (two for 48 off nine overs) both chipped in, while Annabel Sutherland consolidated her standing as the competition's leading wicket-taker with her 2-41, taking her total to thirteen.
A batter's 44 and another's not out 66 runs off 80 deliveries took Bangladesh to their highest-ever total against the Aussies, but the target was made to look straightforward by a team who had successfully pursued 330 runs against the Indian side four days earlier.
“It's great when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a global tournament,” remarked player-of-the-match Alana King. “Certainly it won't end here. We anticipate returning to Indore to take on England and South Africa.”
