Alyssa Healy has delivered outstanding back-to-back centuries to lead her team into the semi-finals of the World Cup, inspiring them to a commanding 10-wicket win over Bangladesh.
Healy finished not out on 113 runs, arriving just a few days after her similarly stellar 142-run knock that defeated hosts India at the same Vizag stadium. This time, she combined in an unbroken 200-run opening partnership with Phoebe Litchfield (84no) to race to their target of 199 in just 24.5 overs.
“I felt I was a not at my best behind the stumps, and perhaps a bit as captain as well tonight, but we’ll accept the win and move on,” she said.
Interestingly, the utmost expertise of the day's chase as the pair added 202 followed possibly the team's poorest performance in the fielding department under the captain's leadership, with the skipper criticizing herself in particular for dropping a couple of the half-dozen catches that were missed.
“I was a little bit disappointed with my wicketkeeping, and I needed to compensate with the bat, and luckily succeeded,” she added.
Since statistics was first recorded on fielding performance statistics in 2013, the half-dozen missed catches represented Australia’s poorest fielding showing at a World Cup tournament.
“Maybe it’s just that phase of the competition – we’ve been here a little while, and it’s an issue we’ll reflect on,” the captain commented.
This allowed Bangladesh to eke out 9-198 after they had chosen to bat, their best-ever score in an ODI against the Aussies, with a key batter scoring the first half-century ever for the Asian side against the reigning champions.
But Alana King mesmeric unbroken ten-over spell, in which she took two wickets for 18 runs with four maidens, was crucial to ensuring the team's target wasn’t too challenging.
Healy Pleased with Victory that Seals Semi-Final Place
Healy was delighted to discover that the victory, which puts her undefeated side top of the group table on nine points after four victories and a abandoned match, guarantees them a berth in the last-four. “That's fantastic,” she said.
The 35-year-old skipper raced to her hundred off just 73 deliveries, the quickest hundred of the World Cup, and ended with 20 boundaries off the 77 deliveries she faced as she pulled away from her partner 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 Phoebe Litchfield struck 12 fours and a six, getting to her first tournament half-century off 46 balls shortly after Healy got there off 43 balls. They went on to record the third-highest stand by any Aussie duo at a Women’s World Cup.
In the first innings, during the sluggish fielding effort, Healy dropped the easiest of chances off Darcie Brown and also failed to hold on to a difficult lofted one off Annabel Sutherland. Annoyingly, she also did take a clear catch off Brown but didn’t have it reviewed when the official turned down their shout.
The recalled Brown bowled the quickest deliveries at the World Cup so far but was nonetheless the Aussies’ costliest bowling option, going for 0-52 off her nine overs.
Spinners Excel as Alana King Stars
Instead, the slow bowlers excelled, led by King, whose performance could have been more successful if Beth Mooney hadn’t dropped one in the slips.
Other spin bowlers Georgia Wareham (2-22 off seven overs) and Gardner (2-48 off nine overs) both chipped in, while Annabel Sutherland strengthened her position as the competition's top wicket-taker with her two for 41, taking her total to 13.
Rubya Haider’s 44 runs and another's unbeaten 66 runs off 80 deliveries took the team to their highest-ever score against the Australians, but the target was rendered straightforward by a side who had successfully pursued 330 runs against India four days before.
“It’s always nice when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a World Cup,” said star performer Alana King. “No doubt it doesn’t stop here. We look forward to going back to Indore to take on the English team and the Proteas.”
