Alyssa Healy has delivered superb consecutive centuries to lead her team into the semi-finals of the World Cup, driving them to a merciless 10-wicket win over Bangladesh.
The wicketkeeper-batter remained unbeaten on 113, coming just a few days after her equally impressive 142-run knock that defeated hosts India at the same Vizag stadium. This time, she shared an unbroken 200-run opening partnership with Phoebe Litchfield (84 not out) to race to their goal of 199 runs in just 24.5 overs.
“I felt I was a little bit poor with the gloves, and perhaps a bit as captain as well today, but we’ll take the win and move on,” Healy remarked.
Interestingly, the supreme professionalism of the day's chase as the pair added 202 runs came after perhaps Australia’s weakest display in the fielding department under the captain's leadership, with the captain criticizing herself in particular for spilling two of the half-dozen catches that went down.
“I was a little bit disappointed with my glovework, and I needed to compensate with the batting, and luckily delivered,” she added.
Since data was first taken on fielding statistics in 2013, the six dropped catches represented the team's poorest fielding showing at a Women’s World Cup.
“Perhaps it’s just that phase of the competition – we’ve been here a while, and it’s something we’ll reflect on,” the captain commented.
This allowed Bangladesh to eke out 9-198 after they had chosen to bat first, their highest total in an ODI against Australia, with a key batter scoring the first fifty ever for the Asian side against the world champions.
But Alana King spellbinding continuous ten-over bowling performance, in which she took two wickets for 18 runs with four maiden overs, was vital to ensuring the team's target wasn’t too challenging.
Healy Pleased with Win that Seals Semi-Final Place
Healy was thrilled to learn that the victory, which puts her unbeaten team top of the standings on nine points after four victories and a wash-out, guarantees them a place in the last-four. “That's great news,” she said.
The 35-year-old skipper raced to her century off just 73 balls, the fastest hundred of the World Cup, and ended with 20 boundaries off the 77 deliveries she faced as she accelerated from her partner later in the innings after they had gone almost boundary-for-boundary towards their fifties.
Litchfield Impresses with Maiden Tournament Half-Century
Left-hander Phoebe Litchfield struck 12 boundaries and a six, getting to her first tournament fifty off 46 deliveries shortly after her partner got there off 43. They went on to achieve the third-highest stand by any Australian pair at a Women’s World Cup.
Earlier, during the subpar fielding display, Healy dropped the easiest of chances off Darcie Brown and also was unable to hold on to a difficult lofted one off Annabel Sutherland. Annoyingly, she also did take a clean chance off Brown but failed to review when the umpire rejected their appeal.
The recalled Brown sent down the quickest balls at the tournament so far but was still the Aussies’ costliest bowler, conceding 0-52 off her nine overs.
Spin Attack Thrive as Alana King Stars
In contrast, the slow bowlers excelled, led by Alana King, whose performance could have been even more productive if a fielder hadn’t dropped one in the slips.
Fellow spinners Georgia Wareham (two for 22 off seven overs) and Ash Gardner (2-48 off nine overs) both chipped in, while Sutherland consolidated her position as the competition's top wicket-taker with her two for 41, taking her tally to thirteen.
A batter's 44 runs and Mostary’s unbeaten 66 runs off 80 deliveries took the team to their highest-ever score against the Aussies, but the total was rendered straightforward by a side who had chased down 330 against India four days earlier.
“It's great when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a World Cup,” remarked player-of-the-match King. “No doubt it won't end here. We look forward to returning to Indore to face the English team and South Africa.”
