Alyssa Healy has produced outstanding consecutive hundreds to steer her team into the last four of the Women's Cricket World Cup, driving them to a dominant 10-wicket victory over their opponents.
The wicketkeeper-batter finished not out on 113, coming just a few days after her similarly brilliant 142 that saw off the Indian team at the identical Visakhapatnam stadium. This time, she combined in an undefeated double-century first-wicket stand with her opening partner (84 not out) to dash to their goal of 199 in just 24.5 overs.
“I thought I was a below par behind the stumps, and perhaps a bit as captain as well tonight, but we’ll accept the two points and progress,” she said.
Ironically, the supreme professionalism of Thursday’s run-chase as the duo added 202 runs came after perhaps the team's shoddiest display in the fielding department under Healy’s stewardship, with the captain criticizing herself in particular for spilling two of the half-dozen catches that went down.
“I was a little bit disappointed with my glovework, and I needed to compensate with the batting, and luckily got the job done,” she added.
Since data was initially taken on fielding metrics in the year 2013, the six missed catches represented Australia’s worst fielding showing at a World Cup tournament.
“Perhaps it’s just that phase of the tournament – we’ve been here a little while, and it’s something we’ll reflect on,” the captain commented.
It helped Bangladesh to manage 9-198 after they had chosen to bat first, their highest total in an One-Day International against the Aussies, with Sobhana Mostary compiling the first half-century ever for the Bangladeshi team against the reigning champions.
But Alana King spellbinding unbroken 10-over bowling performance, in which she took two wickets for 18 runs with four maidens, was key to ensuring the team's chase wasn’t too challenging.
Healy Delighted with Victory that Confirms Knockout Spot
The Australian skipper was delighted to learn that the triumph, which puts her unbeaten side top of the group table on nine points after four wins and a wash-out, guarantees them a place in the semi-finals. “That's fantastic,” she exclaimed.
The experienced captain raced to her hundred off just 73 deliveries, the fastest hundred of the World Cup, and ended with 20 fours off the 77 balls she confronted as she pulled away from her partner in the latter stages in the knock after they had gone practically shot for shot towards their fifties.
The Opener Impresses with First World Cup Fifty
The young batter Litchfield struck 12 fours and a six, getting to her maiden tournament fifty off 46 deliveries soon after Healy reached hers off 43. They went on to record the third-highest partnership by any Australian pair at a World Cup event.
Earlier, during the subpar fielding effort, the captain spilled the simplest of chances off a teammate and also failed to grasp a difficult skied one off Annabel Sutherland. Annoyingly, she also did take a clean chance off Brown but failed to review when the umpire rejected their appeal.
The reinstated Brown bowled the quickest deliveries at the World Cup so far but was still the Aussies’ costliest bowling option, going for 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spinners Thrive as Alana King Leads
Instead, the spinners excelled, spearheaded by Alana King, whose performance could have been even more productive if Beth Mooney hadn’t dropped one in the slips.
Fellow spin bowlers Georgia Wareham (two for 22 off seven) and Gardner (two for 48 off nine) both contributed, while Sutherland strengthened her position as the competition's leading wicket-taker with her 2-41, taking her total to 13.
A batter's 44 runs and another's not out 66 runs off 80 balls took Bangladesh to their highest-ever score against the Australians, but the total was made to look easy meat by a side who had chased down 330 runs against India four days earlier.
“It's great when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a global tournament,” remarked star performer King. “Certainly it won't end here. We anticipate going back to Indore to take on England and South Africa.”
