Alyssa Healy has delivered brilliant consecutive centuries to steer her squad into the last four of the Women's Cricket World Cup, inspiring them to a commanding 10-wicket win over their opponents.
The wicketkeeper-batter remained not out on 113, arriving just four days after her equally impressive 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 race to their target of 199 in just under 25 overs.
“I thought I was a below par behind the stumps, and probably a little bit as skipper as well today, but we’ll accept the win and progress,” she said.
Ironically, the utmost expertise of Thursday’s run-chase as the duo added 202 runs followed perhaps Australia’s shoddiest display in the field under the captain's leadership, with the captain criticizing herself in especial for spilling a couple of the six chances that went down.
“I felt somewhat let down with my wicketkeeping, and I had a little bit to make up for with the batting, and luckily delivered,” she added.
From the time data was first taken on fielding metrics in 2013, the half-dozen missed opportunities marked the team's worst fielding display at a Women’s World Cup.
“Maybe it’s just that phase of the tournament – we’ve been here a while, and it’s something we’ll analyze,” the captain said.
This allowed the opposition to eke out 198 for 9 after they had opted to bat first, their best-ever total in an ODI against the Aussies, with Sobhana Mostary scoring the maiden half-century ever for the Asian side 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 crucial to ensuring the team's target wasn’t too challenging.
The Captain Delighted with Win that Confirms Knockout Place
Healy was pleased to learn that the triumph, which places her unbeaten team top of the standings on nine points after four wins and a abandoned match, secures them a berth in the last-four. “That's fantastic,” she said.
The 35-year-old captain raced to her century off just 73 balls, the fastest century of the tournament, and finished with 20 fours off the 77 balls she confronted as she accelerated from Litchfield later in the knock after they had gone practically shot for shot towards their fifties.
Litchfield Shines with First Tournament Fifty
The young batter Litchfield struck 12 fours and one maximum, reaching to her maiden World Cup half-century off 46 balls soon after her partner got there off 43 balls. They went on to record the third-best partnership by any Aussie duo at a World Cup event.
Earlier, during the sluggish fielding display, Healy spilled the simplest 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 catch off Brown but failed to review when the official rejected their appeal.
The reinstated Brown sent down the quickest deliveries at the World Cup so far but was nonetheless the Aussies’ costliest bowler, going for 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spin Attack Excel as King Leads
Instead, the slow bowlers thrived, spearheaded by King, whose performance could have been more successful if a fielder hadn’t dropped one in the slips.
Fellow spinners Georgia Wareham (2-22 off seven overs) and Ash Gardner (2-48 off nine) both chipped in, while Annabel Sutherland strengthened her position as the competition's top wicket-taker with her two for 41, taking her tally to thirteen.
Rubya Haider’s 44 runs and Mostary’s unbeaten 66 runs off 80 deliveries took Bangladesh to their highest-ever score against the Aussies, but the target was made to look straightforward by a team who had successfully pursued 330 against the Indian side four days earlier.
“It’s always nice 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 Indore to take on England and South Africa.”
