Alyssa Healy has delivered superb back-to-back hundreds to guide her team into the last four of the World Cup, inspiring them to a dominant comprehensive win over their opponents.
Healy remained unbeaten on 113, arriving just four days after her equally impressive 142-run knock that saw off the Indian team at the identical Vizag stadium. This time, she combined in an undefeated double-century opening partnership with Phoebe Litchfield (84no) to chase to their target of 199 in just under 25 deliveries.
“I felt I was a little bit poor behind the stumps, and probably a little bit as skipper as well today, but we’ll accept the win and move on,” she said.
Interestingly, the utmost expertise of the day's run-chase as the pair put on 202 came after perhaps Australia’s weakest display in the field under Healy’s stewardship, with the captain scolding herself in especial for spilling two of the six catches that were missed.
“I was a little bit disappointed with my glovework, and I had a little bit to make up for with the bat, and luckily succeeded,” Healy continued.
From the time statistics was first recorded on fielding statistics in the year 2013, the half-dozen dropped opportunities marked Australia’s poorest fielding showing at a World Cup tournament.
“Perhaps it’s just that phase of the competition – we’ve been here a little while, and it’s an issue we’ll review,” the captain said.
This allowed Bangladesh to manage 9-198 after they had chosen to bat first, their best-ever score in an One-Day International against Australia, with a key batter scoring the first half-century ever for the Asian side against the world champions.
But the spinner's spellbinding unbroken 10-over bowling performance, in which she claimed two wickets for 18 runs with four maidens, was key to making sure Australia’s target remained manageable.
Healy Pleased with Win that Seals Knockout Spot
The Australian skipper was delighted to learn that the triumph, which places her undefeated team at the top of the standings on nine points after four victories and a abandoned match, secures them a place in the semi-finals. “That's great news,” she said.
The experienced skipper sped to her century off just 73 deliveries, the fastest century of the tournament, and finished with 20 fours off the 77 deliveries she faced as she pulled away from Litchfield in the latter stages in the innings after they had gone practically boundary-for-boundary towards their fifties.
Litchfield Impresses with First World Cup Fifty
Left-hander Litchfield struck 12 boundaries and one maximum, reaching to her maiden World Cup half-century off 46 deliveries soon after Healy got there off 43 balls. They went on to record the third-best stand by any Aussie pair at a World Cup event.
Earlier, during the subpar fielding effort, Healy spilled the easiest of chances off Darcie Brown and also failed to grasp a tough skied one off Annabel Sutherland. Frustratingly, she also did take a clean chance off the same bowler but failed to review when the umpire turned down their appeal.
The reinstated Brown sent down the quickest balls at the tournament so far but was still the Aussies’ costliest bowler, going for 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spinners Excel as Alana King Leads
In contrast, the spinners thrived, spearheaded by King, whose spell could have been more successful if a fielder hadn’t dropped one in the slip cordon.
Fellow spinners Wareham (two for 22 off seven) and Gardner (two for 48 off nine) both chipped in, while Sutherland consolidated her standing as the competition's leading wicket-taker with her 2-41, bringing her total to thirteen.
A batter's 44 runs and Mostary’s unbeaten 66 off 80 balls took the team to their record total against the Aussies, but the total was rendered easy meat by a side who had successfully pursued 330 against India a few days earlier.
“It’s always nice when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a global tournament,” said star performer Alana King. “No doubt it doesn’t stop here. We anticipate returning to Indore to take on England and the Proteas.”
