Alyssa Healy has executed brilliant back-to-back centuries to guide her squad into the semi-finals of the Women's Cricket World Cup, driving them to a dominant comprehensive win over their opponents.
The wicketkeeper-batter finished unbeaten on 113 runs, coming just four days after her similarly brilliant 142 that saw off the Indian team at the identical Visakhapatnam stadium. This time, she shared an unbroken double-century opening partnership with her opening partner (84no) to chase to their target of 199 runs in just 24.5 deliveries.
“I felt I was a little bit poor behind the stumps, and probably a little bit as captain as well tonight, but we’ll take the two points and progress,” she said.
Ironically, the supreme expertise of the day's chase as the pair put on 202 runs came after possibly the team's weakest display in the field under Healy’s stewardship, with the skipper scolding herself in especial for spilling a couple of the half-dozen chances that were missed.
“I felt somewhat let down with my glovework, and I needed to compensate with the bat, and fortunately got the job done,” she added.
From the time statistics was initially taken on fielding statistics in 2013, the half-dozen missed catches marked the team's poorest fielding display at a Women’s World Cup.
“Maybe it’s just that time of the tournament – we’ve been here a little while, and it’s something we’ll analyze,” Healy said.
This allowed Bangladesh to manage 9-198 after they had chosen to bat, their best-ever score in an One-Day International against Australia, with Sobhana Mostary compiling the first half-century ever for the Asian side against the reigning champions.
But the spinner's spellbinding unbroken 10-over bowling performance, in which she claimed 2-18 with four maiden overs, was key to making sure Australia’s chase remained manageable.
Healy Pleased with Victory that Confirms Knockout Spot
The Australian skipper was delighted to discover that the victory, which puts her undefeated team top of the group table on nine points after four wins and a abandoned match, guarantees them a berth in the last-four. “That's fantastic,” she exclaimed.
The 35-year-old skipper sped to her hundred off just 73 deliveries, the quickest century of the World Cup, and ended with 20 boundaries off the 77 balls she confronted as she accelerated from Litchfield later in the innings after they had gone almost shot for shot towards their half-centuries.
The Opener Impresses with Maiden World Cup Fifty
Left-hander Litchfield hit 12 boundaries and one maximum, reaching to her maiden tournament fifty off 46 balls soon after her partner reached hers off 43 balls. They went on to achieve the third-best partnership by any Aussie pair at a Women’s World Cup.
Earlier, during the subpar fielding display, Healy spilled the simplest of chances off Darcie Brown and also was unable to grasp a difficult skied one off another bowler. Frustratingly, she also take a clear chance off the same bowler but didn’t have it reviewed when the umpire rejected their appeal.
The reinstated Darcie Brown sent down the fastest deliveries at the World Cup so far but was still the Aussies’ costliest bowling option, going for 0-52 off her nine overs.
Spin Attack Excel as Alana King Stars
Instead, the spinners thrived, led by King, whose performance could have been even more productive if Beth Mooney hadn’t missed one in the slips.
Other spin bowlers Wareham (two for 22 off seven overs) and Gardner (two for 48 off nine overs) both contributed, while Annabel Sutherland strengthened her position as the tournament’s leading wicket-taker with her two for 41, taking her tally to 13.
Rubya Haider’s 44 and Mostary’s unbeaten 66 runs off 80 deliveries took the team to their highest-ever total against the Aussies, but the target was made to look easy meat by a team 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 star performer King. “Certainly it won't end here. We anticipate returning to the next venue to take on England and South Africa.”
