Alyssa Healy has delivered superb consecutive hundreds to guide her team into the last four of the World Cup, inspiring them to a merciless 10-wicket victory over Bangladesh.
Healy finished not out on 113 runs, coming just a few days after her similarly impressive 142-run knock 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 (84 not out) to dash to their target of 199 runs in just 24.5 overs.
“I thought I was a below par with the gloves, and perhaps a little bit as skipper as well tonight, but we’ll take the win and progress,” Healy remarked.
Ironically, the utmost expertise of Thursday’s chase as the pair put on 202 runs followed possibly the team's poorest performance in the field under the captain's stewardship, with the captain criticizing herself in especial for spilling a couple of the half-dozen chances that went down.
“I was a little bit disappointed with my wicketkeeping, and I needed to compensate with the bat, and fortunately succeeded,” she added.
From the time statistics was first recorded on fielding statistics in 2013, the half-dozen missed catches represented Australia’s worst fielding showing 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 something we’ll review,” Healy said.
This allowed Bangladesh to manage 198 for 9 after they had opted to bat, their best-ever total in an One-Day International against the Aussies, with a key batter scoring the first half-century ever for the Asian side against the reigning champions.
But the spinner's mesmeric continuous ten-over bowling performance, in which she took 2-18 with four maidens, was key to ensuring Australia’s chase wasn’t too challenging.
The Captain Delighted with Win that Confirms Knockout Spot
The Australian skipper was thrilled to learn that the triumph, which puts her unbeaten side at the top of the standings on nine points after four wins and a abandoned match, secures them a place in the last-four. “That's great news,” she exclaimed.
The experienced skipper sped to her hundred off just 73 deliveries, the quickest hundred of the World Cup, and finished with 20 boundaries off the 77 deliveries she confronted as she pulled away from Litchfield later in the innings after they had gone practically shot for shot towards their fifties.
The Opener Shines with First World Cup Fifty
The young batter Phoebe Litchfield struck 12 boundaries and one maximum, getting to her maiden World Cup half-century off 46 deliveries shortly after Healy got there off 43. They went on to record the third-best partnership by any Australian pair at a Women’s World Cup.
Earlier, during the subpar fielding effort, the captain dropped the simplest of chances off Darcie Brown and also was unable to hold on to a difficult lofted one off another bowler. Annoyingly, she also take a clean catch off Brown but failed to review when the umpire rejected their shout.
The reinstated Darcie Brown bowled the quickest deliveries 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.
Spinners Thrive as Alana King Stars
In contrast, the slow bowlers thrived, led by Alana King, whose spell could have been even more productive if a fielder hadn’t missed one in the slips.
Other spinners Georgia Wareham (2-22 off seven overs) and Gardner (2-48 off nine overs) both chipped in, while Sutherland consolidated her standing as the competition's top wicket-taker with her 2-41, bringing her total to thirteen.
Rubya Haider’s 44 runs and Mostary’s unbeaten 66 runs off 80 balls took the team to their record score against the Australians, but the target was rendered easy meat by a team who had chased down 330 against India a few days earlier.
“It's fantastic when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a World Cup,” remarked star performer King. “No doubt it won't end here. We look forward to going back to the next venue to face England and the Proteas.”
