Alyssa Healy has executed brilliant consecutive hundreds to steer her team into the semi-finals of the Women's Cricket World Cup, inspiring them to a commanding comprehensive trouncing over their opponents.
Healy finished not out on 113 runs, arriving just a few days after her similarly impressive 142 that saw off the Indian team at the same Visakhapatnam stadium. This time, she combined in an unbroken 200-run first-wicket stand with Phoebe Litchfield (84 not out) to chase to their goal of 199 runs in just under 25 overs.
“I thought I was a not at my best with the gloves, and perhaps a bit as skipper as well today, but we’ll take the two points and move on,” Healy remarked.
Interestingly, the utmost expertise of Thursday’s chase as the pair added 202 came after possibly the team's shoddiest performance in the field under the captain's stewardship, with the skipper scolding herself in especial for spilling two of the six chances that were missed.
“I felt somewhat let down with my glovework, and I needed to compensate with the batting, and luckily delivered,” Healy continued.
From the time statistics was first taken on fielding metrics in 2013, the half-dozen missed catches marked Australia’s worst 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 analyze,” the captain commented.
This allowed the opposition to manage 9-198 after they had opted to bat first, their highest total in an One-Day International against the Aussies, with Sobhana Mostary compiling the first fifty ever for the Bangladeshi team against the reigning champions.
But the spinner's mesmeric continuous ten-over spell, in which she claimed two wickets for 18 runs with four maiden overs, was crucial to ensuring Australia’s target wasn’t too challenging.
Healy Pleased with Win that Confirms Semi-Final Place
The Australian skipper was thrilled to learn that the triumph, which places her undefeated team top of the standings on nine points after four victories and a abandoned match, guarantees them a place in the last-four. “That's fantastic,” she exclaimed.
The 35-year-old captain sped to her century off just 73 deliveries, the quickest century of the World Cup, and finished with 20 fours off the 77 balls she confronted as she accelerated from Litchfield in the latter stages in the innings after they had gone practically shot for shot towards their half-centuries.
Litchfield Impresses with Maiden World Cup Fifty
Left-hander Phoebe Litchfield struck 12 boundaries and a six, reaching to her maiden World Cup half-century off 46 deliveries soon after Healy got there off 43 balls. They went on to achieve the third-best stand by any Aussie pair at a World Cup event.
Earlier, during the sluggish fielding effort, the captain spilled the simplest of edges off a teammate and also was unable to hold on to a tough lofted one off another bowler. Frustratingly, she also take a clean catch off Brown but didn’t have it reviewed when the official rejected their appeal.
The recalled Brown bowled the quickest balls at the World Cup so far but was still the team's most expensive bowler, going for 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spinners Excel as Alana King Stars
Instead, the spinners excelled, spearheaded by Alana King, whose performance could have been even more productive if a fielder hadn’t missed one in the slips.
Other spin bowlers Georgia Wareham (two for 22 off seven overs) and Ash Gardner (2-48 off nine overs) both chipped in, while Sutherland consolidated her standing as the competition's leading wicket-taker with her 2-41, taking her total to 13.
Rubya Haider’s 44 and another's not out 66 runs off 80 balls took Bangladesh to their highest-ever total against the Australians, but the target was made to look straightforward by a team who had chased down 330 runs against India four days before.
“It's fantastic when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a World Cup,” said star performer King. “Certainly it won't end here. We look forward to going back to the next venue to take on England and the Proteas.”
