Alyssa Healy has delivered superb consecutive hundreds to steer her team into the last four of the Women's Cricket World Cup, motivating them to a commanding 10-wicket trouncing over Bangladesh.
The wicketkeeper-batter remained not out on 113, arriving just four days after her similarly impressive 142 that saw off hosts India at the same Visakhapatnam venue. This time, she combined in an undefeated double-century opening partnership with her opening partner (84no) to chase to their target of 199 runs in just 24.5 deliveries.
“I felt I was a not at my best behind the stumps, and probably a little bit as captain as well tonight, but we’ll take the win and progress,” she said.
Interestingly, the utmost expertise of the day's run-chase as the pair added 202 followed perhaps Australia’s poorest performance in the field under Healy’s stewardship, with the captain criticizing herself in particular for dropping two of the six chances that went down.
“I was a little bit disappointed with my glovework, and I needed to compensate with the batting, and luckily delivered,” Healy continued.
From the time data was first recorded on fielding performance metrics in the year 2013, the half-dozen dropped opportunities marked the team's worst fielding display at a Women’s World Cup.
“Maybe it’s just that phase of the tournament – we’ve been here a little while, and it’s an issue we’ll reflect on,” Healy commented.
It helped Bangladesh to eke out 9-198 after they had chosen to bat first, their highest score in an ODI against Australia, with a key batter compiling the first fifty ever for the Asian side against the reigning champions.
But Alana King mesmeric unbroken 10-over bowling performance, in which she claimed two wickets for 18 runs with four maiden overs, was key to making sure Australia’s target remained manageable.
The Captain Pleased with Win that Seals Semi-Final Spot
The Australian skipper was delighted to discover that the victory, which puts her unbeaten side top of the group table on nine points after four victories and a abandoned match, secures them a berth in the semi-finals. “That’s really cool,” she exclaimed.
The 35-year-old captain sped to her century off just 73 deliveries, the quickest hundred of the tournament, and finished with 20 boundaries off the 77 balls she faced as she accelerated from her partner in the latter stages in the knock after they had gone almost boundary-for-boundary towards their fifties.
The Opener Shines with Maiden World Cup Half-Century
The young batter Phoebe Litchfield struck 12 boundaries and a six, reaching to her first World Cup half-century off 46 deliveries shortly after Healy got there off 43. They went on to achieve the third-highest partnership by any Aussie duo at a World Cup event.
In the first innings, during the subpar fielding display, Healy spilled the easiest of chances off Darcie Brown and also was unable to hold on to a difficult 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 official rejected their appeal.
The recalled Brown bowled the fastest balls at the World Cup so far but was nonetheless the Aussies’ most expensive bowler, going for 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spin Attack Thrive as Alana King Leads
In contrast, the slow bowlers thrived, led by King, whose spell could have been more successful if Beth Mooney hadn’t dropped one in the slip cordon.
Fellow spin bowlers Wareham (two for 22 off seven) and Ash Gardner (two for 48 off nine) both chipped in, while Sutherland consolidated her position as the tournament’s leading wicket-taker with her two for 41, bringing her tally to thirteen.
A batter's 44 runs and another's unbeaten 66 runs off 80 deliveries took the team to their record total against the Aussies, but the target was made to look easy meat by a side who had successfully pursued 330 against the Indian side four days before.
“It’s always nice when you’ve got the ‘Q’ next to your name in a World Cup,” said star performer King. “Certainly it doesn’t stop here. We look forward to going back to Indore to take on England and South Africa.”
