Alyssa Healy has delivered outstanding back-to-back centuries to steer her squad into the last four of the Women's Cricket World Cup, driving them to a dominant comprehensive trouncing over Bangladesh.
Healy remained unbeaten on 113, coming just a few days after her similarly impressive 142 that saw off the Indian team at the identical Vizag stadium. This time, she combined in an undefeated 200-run first-wicket stand with her opening partner (84no) to chase to their target of 199 in just under 25 overs.
“I felt I was a little bit poor with the gloves, and probably a bit as captain as well tonight, but we’ll accept the win and progress,” she said.
Interestingly, the utmost professionalism of the day's chase as the duo added 202 runs came after perhaps Australia’s shoddiest performance in the fielding department under the captain's leadership, with the captain scolding herself in especial for dropping a couple of the half-dozen chances that went down.
“I was a little bit disappointed with my glovework, and I had a little bit to make up for with the bat, and luckily delivered,” Healy continued.
From the time data was first recorded on fielding performance statistics in 2013, the half-dozen dropped catches marked the team's poorest fielding display at a World Cup tournament.
“Maybe it’s just that time of the tournament – we’ve been here a while, and it’s something we’ll reflect on,” Healy commented.
It helped Bangladesh to manage 198 for 9 after they had opted to bat first, their best-ever total in an One-Day International against Australia, with a key batter scoring the first half-century ever for the Asian side against the world champions.
But the spinner's spellbinding unbroken ten-over spell, in which she claimed two wickets for 18 runs with four maiden overs, was vital to making sure the team's chase wasn’t too challenging.
The Captain Pleased with Victory that Confirms Semi-Final Spot
Healy was delighted to discover that the victory, which places her undefeated team at the top of the standings on nine points after four victories and a wash-out, guarantees them a place in the semi-finals. “That’s really cool,” she exclaimed.
The 35-year-old skipper sped to her century off just 73 deliveries, the quickest hundred of the World Cup, and ended with 20 boundaries off the 77 balls she faced as she pulled away from Litchfield later in the knock after they had gone almost boundary-for-boundary towards their fifties.
The Opener Shines with First World Cup Half-Century
The young batter Litchfield hit 12 fours and one maximum, reaching to her first World Cup fifty off 46 balls shortly after her partner reached hers off 43 balls. They went on to achieve the third-highest partnership by any Aussie pair at a Women’s World Cup.
Earlier, during the subpar fielding effort, the captain spilled the easiest of edges off a teammate and also was unable to grasp a tough skied one off Annabel Sutherland. Annoyingly, she also did take a clean chance off Brown but failed to review when the official rejected their shout.
The reinstated Darcie Brown sent down the quickest balls at the World Cup so far but was nonetheless the Aussies’ costliest bowler, conceding 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spinners Thrive as Alana King Stars
In contrast, the slow bowlers thrived, led by King, whose performance could have been even more productive if Beth Mooney hadn’t dropped one in the slips.
Other spinners Wareham (two for 22 off seven overs) and Gardner (two for 48 off nine overs) both chipped in, while Sutherland consolidated her standing as the competition's leading wicket-taker with her 2-41, bringing her tally to 13.
A batter's 44 runs and another's not out 66 off 80 balls took Bangladesh to their highest-ever total against the Australians, but the target was made to look easy meat by a side who had chased down 330 runs against the Indian side a few days earlier.
“It's fantastic when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a global tournament,” said player-of-the-match King. “Certainly it doesn’t stop here. We anticipate returning to the next venue to take on the English team and South Africa.”
