Alyssa Healy has executed superb consecutive centuries to steer her squad into the last four of the Women's Cricket World Cup, inspiring them to a dominant 10-wicket victory over their opponents.
Healy remained not out on 113, arriving just four days after her similarly stellar 142-run knock that saw off the Indian team at the same Visakhapatnam stadium. This time, she shared an undefeated 200-run first-wicket stand with her opening partner (84no) to dash to their goal of 199 in just 24.5 overs.
“I felt I was a not at my best behind the stumps, and probably a bit as captain as well today, but we’ll accept the two points and progress,” Healy remarked.
Ironically, the supreme expertise of the day's run-chase as the pair added 202 came after perhaps the team's poorest display in the fielding department under Healy’s stewardship, with the captain criticizing herself in particular for dropping two of the half-dozen catches that went down.
“I felt somewhat let down with my glovework, and I had a little bit to make up for with the batting, and fortunately delivered,” Healy continued.
Since data was first taken on fielding statistics in the year 2013, the half-dozen dropped catches marked Australia’s poorest fielding showing at a World Cup tournament.
“Perhaps it’s just that time of the tournament – we’ve been here a while, and it’s an issue we’ll reflect on,” the captain commented.
This allowed Bangladesh to manage 198 for 9 after they had opted to bat, their best-ever score in an ODI against the Aussies, with Sobhana Mostary compiling the first fifty ever for the Asian side against the reigning champions.
But Alana King spellbinding unbroken ten-over bowling performance, in which she claimed two wickets for 18 runs with four maiden overs, was vital to making sure Australia’s target wasn’t too challenging.
The Captain Pleased with Win that Confirms Semi-Final Spot
Healy was pleased to learn that the victory, which places her undefeated team at the top of the group table on nine points after four victories and a wash-out, secures them a place in the semi-finals. “That's fantastic,” she exclaimed.
The experienced captain raced to her century off just 73 deliveries, the quickest century of the World Cup, and ended with 20 boundaries off the 77 deliveries she confronted as she accelerated from Litchfield later in the knock after they had gone practically shot for shot towards their fifties.
The Opener Shines with First Tournament Fifty
The young batter Litchfield hit 12 boundaries and a six, reaching to her maiden tournament half-century off 46 deliveries soon after Healy reached hers off 43 balls. They went on to record the third-best partnership by any Aussie duo at a Women’s World Cup.
Earlier, during the sluggish fielding display, the captain spilled the easiest of chances off Darcie Brown and also failed to grasp a tough lofted one off another bowler. Annoyingly, she also did take a clean chance off the same bowler but didn’t have it reviewed when the umpire rejected their shout.
The recalled Darcie Brown sent down the quickest balls at the World Cup so far but was nonetheless the Aussies’ costliest bowling option, conceding 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spin Attack Thrive as King Leads
Instead, the slow bowlers excelled, spearheaded by Alana King, whose performance could have been even more productive if Beth Mooney hadn’t missed one in the slip cordon.
Other spin bowlers Wareham (2-22 off seven) and Gardner (2-48 off nine) both contributed, while Sutherland consolidated her position as the tournament’s leading wicket-taker with her 2-41, taking her total to thirteen.
Rubya Haider’s 44 and another's unbeaten 66 runs off 80 balls took the team to their record total against the Australians, but the total was rendered easy meat by a team who had chased down 330 against India four days before.
“It's great when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a World Cup,” said player-of-the-match King. “Certainly it doesn’t stop here. We look forward to returning to Indore to take on England and South Africa.”
