Alyssa Healy has delivered superb consecutive hundreds to steer her team into the semi-finals of the World Cup, driving them to a merciless comprehensive victory over their opponents.
The wicketkeeper-batter finished unbeaten on 113, arriving just four days after her equally brilliant 142-run knock that defeated hosts India at the same Visakhapatnam venue. This time, she combined in an unbroken 200-run first-wicket stand with her opening partner (84no) to chase to their target of 199 in just under 25 deliveries.
“I thought I was a little bit poor with the gloves, and probably a bit as skipper as well tonight, but we’ll accept the win and move on,” Healy remarked.
Interestingly, the supreme expertise of the day's chase as the duo added 202 followed possibly the team's shoddiest performance in the field under Healy’s stewardship, with the skipper criticizing herself in especial for dropping a couple of the six catches that went down.
“I felt somewhat let down with my glovework, and I had a little bit to make up for with the batting, and luckily succeeded,” Healy continued.
Since statistics was first recorded on fielding statistics in 2013, the six dropped opportunities represented Australia’s poorest fielding display at a World Cup tournament.
“Perhaps it’s just that time of the competition – we’ve been here a while, and it’s something we’ll review,” Healy said.
It helped Bangladesh to manage 9-198 after they had opted to bat, their best-ever total in an ODI against Australia, with a key batter scoring the first half-century ever for the Asian side against the reigning champions.
But Alana King mesmeric continuous ten-over spell, in which she took two wickets for 18 runs with four maiden overs, was vital to ensuring Australia’s target remained manageable.
The Captain Pleased with Victory that Seals Knockout Spot
Healy was thrilled to discover that the triumph, which places her undefeated team at the top of the standings on nine points after four victories and a abandoned match, secures them a place in the last-four. “That's fantastic,” she exclaimed.
The experienced skipper sped to her century off just 73 balls, the quickest hundred of the tournament, and ended with 20 boundaries off the 77 balls she confronted as she pulled away from Litchfield later in the knock after they had gone practically shot for shot towards their half-centuries.
The Opener Impresses with First World Cup Fifty
The young batter Phoebe Litchfield struck 12 fours and one maximum, reaching to her first tournament fifty off 46 deliveries shortly after her partner reached hers off 43. They went on to achieve the third-best stand by any Aussie duo at a World Cup event.
In the first innings, during the subpar fielding effort, the captain dropped the easiest of chances off Darcie Brown and also failed to hold on to a tough lofted one off another bowler. Frustratingly, she also did take a clean chance off the same bowler but failed to review when the umpire turned down their appeal.
The reinstated Darcie Brown sent down the quickest deliveries at the tournament so far but was still the team's costliest bowler, conceding 0-52 off her nine overs.
Spinners Thrive as King Stars
Instead, the slow bowlers thrived, led by Alana King, whose spell could have been even more productive if Beth Mooney hadn’t missed one in the slips.
Fellow spin bowlers Georgia Wareham (2-22 off seven) and Gardner (two for 48 off nine) both contributed, while Sutherland consolidated her position as the tournament’s top wicket-taker with her two for 41, taking her tally to thirteen.
Rubya Haider’s 44 and another's unbeaten 66 off 80 deliveries took the team to their record total against the Australians, but the total was rendered easy meat by a team who had successfully pursued 330 runs against India four days earlier.
“It’s always nice when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a World Cup,” remarked star performer Alana King. “Certainly it won't end here. We anticipate going back to Indore to face England and South Africa.”
