Alyssa Healy has produced superb back-to-back centuries to guide her team into the last four of the Women's Cricket World Cup, motivating them to a commanding comprehensive trouncing over Bangladesh.
Healy finished not out on 113 runs, arriving just a few days after her similarly impressive 142-run knock that defeated the Indian team at the same Visakhapatnam stadium. This time, she combined in an unbroken 200-run first-wicket stand with her opening partner (84 not out) to race to their goal of 199 runs in just under 25 overs.
“I felt I was a below par behind the stumps, and probably a bit as captain as well tonight, but we’ll accept the win and progress,” Healy remarked.
Ironically, the utmost expertise of the day's chase as the duo put on 202 came after possibly Australia’s weakest performance in the fielding department under the captain's leadership, with the skipper scolding herself in especial for dropping a couple of the half-dozen catches that went down.
“I was a little bit disappointed with my wicketkeeping, and I needed to compensate with the batting, and luckily succeeded,” she added.
From the time statistics was initially recorded on fielding statistics in the year 2013, the six dropped catches marked Australia’s poorest fielding showing at a Women’s World Cup.
“Maybe it’s just that phase of the competition – we’ve been here a while, and it’s an issue we’ll analyze,” the captain commented.
It helped Bangladesh to manage 9-198 after they had opted to bat first, their best-ever total in an One-Day International against Australia, with a key batter compiling the maiden half-century ever for the Asian side against the world champions.
But the spinner's mesmeric continuous ten-over bowling performance, in which she claimed 2-18 with four maiden overs, was vital to ensuring the team's target remained manageable.
The Captain Pleased with Victory that Seals Semi-Final Spot
The Australian skipper was pleased to learn that the victory, which places her undefeated side top of the group table on nine points after four victories and a wash-out, guarantees them a place in the semi-finals. “That's great news,” she exclaimed.
The experienced captain raced to her century off just 73 balls, the quickest century of the World Cup, and finished with 20 fours off the 77 deliveries she faced as she accelerated from Litchfield in the latter stages in the knock after they had gone almost boundary-for-boundary towards their fifties.
The Opener Impresses with Maiden Tournament Fifty
The young batter Phoebe Litchfield struck 12 boundaries and a six, reaching to her maiden World Cup half-century off 46 balls shortly after her partner reached hers off 43 balls. They went on to achieve the third-highest partnership by any Australian duo at a World Cup event.
In the first innings, during the sluggish fielding effort, the captain spilled the easiest of chances off Darcie Brown and also was unable to grasp a tough lofted one off another bowler. Annoyingly, she also take a clear chance off Brown but failed to review when the official turned down their shout.
The recalled Brown sent down the quickest deliveries at the World Cup so far but was still the Aussies’ costliest bowler, conceding 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spinners Thrive as Alana King Stars
Instead, the spinners excelled, led by King, whose spell could have been even more productive if a fielder hadn’t dropped one in the slips.
Fellow spinners Wareham (2-22 off seven) and Gardner (2-48 off nine overs) both contributed, while Annabel Sutherland strengthened her standing as the competition's leading wicket-taker with her two for 41, taking her tally to thirteen.
Rubya Haider’s 44 and Mostary’s unbeaten 66 off 80 balls took Bangladesh to their record score against the Australians, but the total was made to look straightforward by a side who had chased down 330 against the Indian side four days earlier.
“It's great when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a global tournament,” remarked star performer King. “Certainly it won't end here. We anticipate going back to Indore to take on the English team and South Africa.”
