Alyssa Healy has executed superb consecutive centuries to steer her squad into the last four of the Women's Cricket World Cup, inspiring them to a merciless 10-wicket win over their opponents.
The wicketkeeper-batter finished unbeaten on 113, arriving just a few days after her equally stellar 142 that saw off the Indian team at the same Visakhapatnam stadium. This time, she shared an unbroken double-century first-wicket stand with her opening partner (84no) to race to their goal of 199 runs in just under 25 overs.
“I thought I was a below par behind the stumps, and probably a little bit as skipper as well today, but we’ll accept the two points and move on,” Healy remarked.
Ironically, the supreme expertise of Thursday’s chase as the pair put on 202 followed possibly the team's weakest display in the fielding department under the captain's leadership, with the skipper scolding herself in particular for spilling a couple of the half-dozen chances that went down.
“I felt somewhat let down with my wicketkeeping, and I needed to compensate with the batting, and luckily succeeded,” Healy continued.
Since data was first taken on fielding statistics in the year 2013, the six missed opportunities represented the team's poorest fielding display at a Women’s World Cup.
“Perhaps it’s just that time of the competition – we’ve been here a while, and it’s an issue we’ll review,” Healy commented.
It helped the opposition to eke out 198 for 9 after they had opted to bat, their best-ever score in an ODI against the Aussies, with a key batter scoring the maiden half-century ever for the Bangladeshi team against the world champions.
But the spinner's spellbinding continuous 10-over spell, in which she claimed 2-18 with four maidens, was vital to making sure Australia’s chase wasn’t too challenging.
Healy Delighted with Victory that Confirms Knockout Place
The Australian skipper was thrilled to discover that the victory, which places her undefeated side top of the group table on nine points after four victories and a abandoned match, guarantees them a berth in the semi-finals. “That's fantastic,” she exclaimed.
The experienced captain raced to her century off just 73 balls, the fastest hundred of the tournament, and finished with 20 boundaries off the 77 deliveries she confronted as she pulled away from Litchfield in the latter stages in the innings after they had gone practically shot for shot towards their half-centuries.
The Opener Shines with First Tournament Half-Century
The young batter Phoebe Litchfield struck 12 fours and a six, getting to her maiden World Cup fifty off 46 balls shortly after Healy got there off 43 balls. They went on to record the third-highest stand by any Australian pair at a Women’s World Cup.
Earlier, during the subpar fielding effort, the captain spilled the simplest of edges off a teammate and also failed to hold on to a difficult lofted one off Annabel Sutherland. Annoyingly, she also take a clear catch off Brown but didn’t have it reviewed when the umpire rejected their appeal.
The recalled Brown sent down the quickest balls at the World Cup so far but was still the team's costliest bowler, going for 0-52 off her nine overs.
Spin Attack Excel as King Leads
Instead, the slow bowlers thrived, led by King, whose performance could have been more successful if a fielder hadn’t dropped one in the slip cordon.
Fellow spinners Wareham (two for 22 off seven overs) and Ash Gardner (2-48 off nine overs) both chipped in, while Annabel Sutherland consolidated her standing as the tournament’s leading wicket-taker with her 2-41, taking her total to thirteen.
Rubya Haider’s 44 runs and Mostary’s not out 66 off 80 balls took Bangladesh to their highest-ever total against the Australians, but the total was rendered easy meat by a side who had successfully pursued 330 against the Indian side four days earlier.
“It's great when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a global tournament,” remarked player-of-the-match King. “No doubt it doesn’t stop here. We look forward to returning to Indore to take on England and the Proteas.”
