Alyssa Healy has delivered superb consecutive centuries to guide her team into the last four of the Women's Cricket World Cup, motivating them to a commanding comprehensive win over Bangladesh.
Healy remained unbeaten on 113 runs, arriving just a few days after her equally stellar 142 that defeated the Indian team at the identical Visakhapatnam stadium. This time, she combined in an unbroken 200-run opening partnership with Phoebe Litchfield (84no) to race to their goal of 199 runs in just under 25 deliveries.
“I felt I was a below par behind the stumps, and perhaps a bit as captain as well tonight, but we’ll accept the win and move on,” Healy remarked.
Interestingly, the supreme expertise of Thursday’s run-chase as the duo put on 202 runs came after perhaps the team's poorest performance in the field under the captain's stewardship, with the skipper criticizing herself in especial for spilling two of the half-dozen chances that were missed.
“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 performance metrics in 2013, the half-dozen dropped catches represented Australia’s poorest fielding showing at a Women’s World Cup.
“Maybe it’s just that time of the competition – we’ve been here a while, and it’s something we’ll reflect on,” Healy said.
This allowed Bangladesh to manage 9-198 after they had opted to bat, their best-ever score in an One-Day International against the Aussies, with Sobhana Mostary compiling the first fifty ever for the Asian side against the reigning champions.
But the spinner's spellbinding continuous ten-over bowling performance, in which she claimed 2-18 with four maiden overs, was key to making sure the team's chase wasn’t too challenging.
The Captain Delighted with Victory that Confirms Knockout Place
The Australian skipper was delighted to learn that the victory, which places her undefeated side at the top of the standings on nine points after four wins and a wash-out, secures them a place in the last-four. “That’s really cool,” she exclaimed.
The experienced captain raced to her century off just 73 deliveries, the fastest century of the World Cup, and ended with 20 boundaries off the 77 balls she confronted as she pulled away from Litchfield in the latter stages in the knock after they had gone almost shot for shot towards their fifties.
The Opener Impresses with First Tournament Fifty
Left-hander Litchfield struck 12 fours and one maximum, getting to her maiden tournament half-century off 46 balls shortly after her partner got there off 43 balls. They went on to achieve the third-best partnership by any Aussie pair at a World Cup event.
Earlier, during the subpar fielding effort, the captain spilled the easiest of chances off a teammate and also was unable to hold on to a difficult lofted one off another bowler. Frustratingly, she also did take a clear catch off Brown but failed to review when the official rejected their appeal.
The reinstated Brown sent down the quickest balls at the World Cup so far but was nonetheless the team's costliest bowler, going for 0-52 off her nine overs.
Spinners Thrive as King Leads
Instead, the spinners thrived, spearheaded by Alana King, whose spell could have been even more productive if a fielder hadn’t missed one in the slip cordon.
Other spin bowlers Georgia Wareham (2-22 off seven) and Ash Gardner (2-48 off nine) both chipped in, while Sutherland consolidated her position as the competition's leading wicket-taker with her two for 41, bringing her tally to 13.
Rubya Haider’s 44 and Mostary’s not out 66 runs off 80 balls took Bangladesh to their highest-ever score against the Aussies, but the total was made to look straightforward by a side who had chased down 330 against India four days before.
“It's fantastic when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a World Cup,” said star performer Alana King. “Certainly it doesn’t stop here. We look forward to returning to the next venue to face the English team and the Proteas.”
