Alyssa Healy has produced brilliant consecutive hundreds to guide her team into the last four of the World Cup, driving them to a merciless comprehensive win over their opponents.
The wicketkeeper-batter finished not out on 113 runs, arriving just a few days after her similarly impressive 142 that saw off the Indian team at the identical Visakhapatnam venue. This time, she combined in an undefeated double-century opening partnership with Phoebe Litchfield (84 not out) to chase to their goal of 199 runs in just under 25 deliveries.
“I thought I was a not at my best behind the stumps, and perhaps a bit as skipper as well tonight, but we’ll take the win and move on,” she said.
Ironically, the utmost professionalism of Thursday’s run-chase as the pair put on 202 followed possibly Australia’s poorest display in the field under Healy’s stewardship, with the skipper scolding herself in particular for spilling a couple of the half-dozen catches that were missed.
“I felt somewhat let down with my glovework, and I needed to compensate with the batting, and fortunately got the job done,” Healy continued.
From the time statistics was initially taken on fielding performance statistics in the year 2013, the six dropped opportunities represented Australia’s worst fielding showing at a Women’s World Cup.
“Perhaps it’s just that time of the competition – we’ve been here a while, and it’s something we’ll reflect on,” the captain commented.
This allowed the opposition to manage 198 for 9 after they had chosen to bat, their best-ever total in an One-Day International against the Aussies, with Sobhana Mostary scoring the maiden half-century ever for the Bangladeshi team against the reigning champions.
But the spinner's mesmeric unbroken 10-over bowling performance, in which she claimed two wickets for 18 runs with four maiden overs, was vital to ensuring Australia’s chase remained manageable.
Healy Pleased with Win that Seals Semi-Final Spot
The Australian skipper was pleased to learn that the triumph, which puts her undefeated side top of the group table on nine points after four wins and a wash-out, 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 fours off the 77 balls she confronted as she accelerated from Litchfield in the latter stages in the knock after they had gone practically boundary-for-boundary towards their fifties.
Litchfield Impresses with Maiden World Cup Half-Century
Left-hander Phoebe Litchfield struck 12 boundaries and one maximum, getting to her first tournament fifty off 46 deliveries shortly after her partner reached hers off 43 balls. They went on to achieve the third-highest partnership by any Aussie pair at a World Cup event.
In the first innings, during the subpar fielding effort, Healy spilled the simplest of chances off a teammate and also was unable to grasp a tough lofted one off another bowler. Annoyingly, she also take a clean catch off the same bowler but didn’t have it reviewed when the umpire turned down their shout.
The recalled Darcie Brown sent down the quickest deliveries at the tournament so far but was still the team's costliest bowling option, going for 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spin Attack Excel as King Leads
In contrast, the slow bowlers thrived, spearheaded by King, whose spell could have been more successful if Beth Mooney hadn’t dropped one in the slip cordon.
Fellow spin bowlers Georgia Wareham (2-22 off seven overs) and Ash Gardner (2-48 off nine overs) both contributed, while Sutherland consolidated her position as the competition's top wicket-taker with her two for 41, taking her tally to 13.
Rubya Haider’s 44 runs and Mostary’s unbeaten 66 runs off 80 deliveries took Bangladesh to their record total against the Australians, but the total was made to look easy meat by a side who had chased down 330 against the Indian side a few days earlier.
“It's great when you’ve got the ‘Q’ next to your name in a global tournament,” remarked star performer Alana King. “No doubt it doesn’t stop here. We anticipate going back to the next venue to take on England and the Proteas.”
