Alyssa Healy has produced outstanding consecutive centuries to guide her team into the last four of the Women's Cricket World Cup, driving them to a dominant comprehensive win over Bangladesh.
Healy remained not out on 113, coming just a few days after her equally stellar 142-run knock that defeated hosts India at the same Vizag stadium. This time, she shared an unbroken double-century first-wicket stand with Phoebe Litchfield (84 not out) to race to their target of 199 runs in just 24.5 deliveries.
“I thought I was a below par with the gloves, and probably a bit as captain as well tonight, but we’ll accept the two points and progress,” Healy remarked.
Interestingly, the utmost expertise of Thursday’s chase as the duo put on 202 runs followed possibly Australia’s weakest performance in the field under the captain's stewardship, with the skipper criticizing herself in particular for spilling two of the six chances 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 got the job done,” she added.
From the time data was first recorded on fielding performance metrics in the year 2013, the half-dozen dropped catches marked Australia’s poorest fielding display at a Women’s World Cup.
“Perhaps it’s just that phase of the tournament – we’ve been here a while, and it’s an issue we’ll analyze,” the captain said.
It helped the opposition to eke out 198 for 9 after they had opted to bat first, their best-ever score in an One-Day International against Australia, with Sobhana Mostary scoring the first half-century ever for the Bangladeshi team against the reigning champions.
But Alana King mesmeric unbroken 10-over spell, in which she took 2-18 with four maidens, was crucial to ensuring Australia’s target remained manageable.
The Captain Pleased with Victory that Confirms Semi-Final Place
The Australian skipper was delighted to discover that the triumph, which puts her unbeaten team top of the standings on nine points after four victories and a wash-out, guarantees them a berth in the last-four. “That's fantastic,” she exclaimed.
The 35-year-old skipper sped to her century off just 73 balls, the quickest century of the tournament, and ended with 20 fours off the 77 balls she confronted as she accelerated from Litchfield later in the knock after they had gone almost boundary-for-boundary towards their fifties.
Litchfield Impresses with Maiden World Cup Fifty
Left-hander Phoebe Litchfield struck 12 fours and a six, getting to her maiden World Cup fifty off 46 balls soon after her partner got there off 43. They went on to achieve the third-best partnership by any Aussie pair at a World Cup event.
Earlier, during the subpar fielding display, the captain dropped the simplest of chances off Darcie Brown and also was unable to grasp a tough lofted one off another bowler. Frustratingly, she also take a clear chance off the same bowler but failed to review when the official turned down their shout.
The reinstated Brown bowled the quickest balls at the World Cup so far but was nonetheless the Aussies’ costliest bowler, going for 0-52 off her nine overs.
Spinners Excel as King Stars
Instead, the spinners thrived, spearheaded by King, whose spell could have been even more productive if a fielder hadn’t dropped one in the slip cordon.
Fellow spin bowlers Georgia Wareham (2-22 off seven) and Ash Gardner (2-48 off nine) both contributed, while Annabel Sutherland strengthened her position as the competition's leading wicket-taker with her 2-41, taking her total to thirteen.
A batter's 44 and another's unbeaten 66 runs off 80 balls took the team to their highest-ever score against the Aussies, but the total was made to look straightforward by a team who had chased down 330 against the Indian side four days earlier.
“It's fantastic when you’ve got the ‘Q’ next to your name in a World Cup,” said player-of-the-match King. “No doubt it doesn’t stop here. We anticipate going back to the next venue to face England and South Africa.”
