Alyssa Healy has produced brilliant back-to-back hundreds to lead her squad into the last four of the Women's Cricket World Cup, motivating them to a merciless 10-wicket trouncing over their opponents.
Healy finished unbeaten on 113 runs, arriving just four days after her equally impressive 142 that defeated the Indian team at the same Visakhapatnam venue. This time, she shared an unbroken 200-run opening partnership with her opening partner (84no) to chase to their goal of 199 runs in just 24.5 deliveries.
“I felt I was a below par behind the stumps, and probably a little bit as skipper as well tonight, but we’ll accept the two points and progress,” she said.
Ironically, the utmost expertise of the day's run-chase as the pair put on 202 followed possibly the team's poorest performance in the fielding department under the captain's stewardship, with the skipper scolding herself in particular for dropping a couple of the six catches that were missed.
“I felt somewhat let down with my glovework, and I needed to compensate with the bat, and luckily delivered,” she added.
Since statistics was first recorded on fielding performance statistics in the year 2013, the six dropped catches marked Australia’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 analyze,” Healy said.
This allowed Bangladesh to eke out 198 for 9 after they had chosen to bat first, their highest total in an One-Day International against the Aussies, with Sobhana Mostary scoring the first fifty ever for the Bangladeshi team against the reigning champions.
But the spinner's mesmeric continuous 10-over spell, in which she claimed 2-18 with four maiden overs, was key to making sure the team's target wasn’t too challenging.
Healy Pleased with Victory that Confirms Semi-Final Place
Healy was pleased to discover that the triumph, which places her unbeaten team top of the standings on nine points after four wins and a abandoned match, guarantees them a berth in the last-four. “That's great news,” she exclaimed.
The 35-year-old captain raced to her hundred off just 73 deliveries, the fastest hundred of the World Cup, and ended with 20 boundaries off the 77 deliveries she faced as she pulled away from her partner in the latter stages in the innings after they had gone practically shot for shot towards their fifties.
Litchfield Impresses with First Tournament Half-Century
The young batter Phoebe Litchfield struck 12 fours and one maximum, reaching to her first World Cup half-century off 46 deliveries shortly after Healy reached hers off 43 balls. They went on to achieve the third-highest partnership by any Australian duo at a Women’s World Cup.
In the first innings, during the subpar fielding effort, Healy spilled the easiest of edges off Darcie Brown and also failed to grasp a tough skied one off Annabel Sutherland. Annoyingly, she also take a clean catch off Brown but failed to review when the umpire turned down their appeal.
The recalled Brown bowled the quickest balls at the World Cup so far but was still the team's most expensive bowling option, going for 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spin Attack Excel as Alana King Leads
Instead, the spinners excelled, spearheaded by Alana King, whose spell could have been even more productive if Beth Mooney hadn’t dropped one in the slips.
Other spin bowlers Georgia Wareham (two for 22 off seven) and Ash Gardner (two for 48 off nine overs) both chipped in, while Annabel Sutherland consolidated her position as the competition's top wicket-taker with her two for 41, bringing her tally to 13.
Rubya Haider’s 44 and another's not out 66 off 80 deliveries took Bangladesh to their record total against the Australians, but the total was rendered straightforward by a side who had successfully pursued 330 runs against India four days before.
“It's fantastic when you’ve got the ‘Q’ next to your name in a World Cup,” said player-of-the-match King. “No doubt it doesn’t stop here. We anticipate going back to the next venue to take on the English team and the Proteas.”
