Alyssa Healy has delivered superb consecutive centuries to guide her team into the semi-finals of the Women's Cricket World Cup, inspiring them to a dominant 10-wicket victory over their opponents.
The wicketkeeper-batter finished not out on 113, coming just four days after her equally impressive 142 that defeated the Indian team at the identical Visakhapatnam stadium. This time, she shared an unbroken 200-run opening partnership with her opening partner (84no) to race to their goal of 199 in just under 25 overs.
“I felt I was a not at my best with the gloves, and probably a bit as skipper as well today, but we’ll take the win and progress,” Healy remarked.
Interestingly, the supreme professionalism of the day's run-chase as the duo put on 202 came after perhaps the team's shoddiest display in the field under Healy’s stewardship, with the captain criticizing herself in particular for spilling a couple of the half-dozen catches that were missed.
“I was a little bit disappointed with my glovework, and I needed to compensate with the bat, and luckily delivered,” Healy continued.
From the time statistics was initially taken on fielding statistics in the year 2013, the six missed opportunities marked the team's poorest fielding display at a World Cup tournament.
“Perhaps it’s just that time of the competition – we’ve been here a little while, and it’s something we’ll reflect on,” Healy commented.
This allowed Bangladesh to eke out 9-198 after they had chosen to bat, their highest total in an One-Day International against the Aussies, with Sobhana Mostary scoring the maiden fifty ever for the Asian side against the world champions.
But Alana King mesmeric continuous 10-over bowling performance, in which she claimed two wickets for 18 runs with four maiden overs, was key to ensuring the team's target wasn’t too challenging.
Healy Delighted with Win that Confirms Knockout Spot
The Australian skipper was delighted to discover that the victory, which places her undefeated side top of the standings on nine points after four victories and a abandoned match, guarantees them a berth in the semi-finals. “That's great news,” she said.
The experienced skipper sped to her hundred off just 73 deliveries, the fastest century of the World Cup, and ended with 20 fours off the 77 balls she faced as she pulled away from her partner later in the knock after they had gone practically boundary-for-boundary towards their half-centuries.
Litchfield Impresses with Maiden Tournament Half-Century
The young batter Litchfield struck 12 boundaries and a six, getting to her first tournament half-century off 46 deliveries soon after Healy reached hers off 43. They went on to record the third-highest stand by any Aussie pair at a World Cup event.
In the first innings, during the sluggish fielding display, the captain dropped the simplest of chances off a teammate and also failed to hold on to a difficult skied one off another bowler. Frustratingly, she also take a clean catch off Brown but failed to review when the official turned down their shout.
The reinstated Darcie Brown sent down the fastest balls at the World Cup so far but was nonetheless the Aussies’ costliest bowler, conceding 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spinners Excel as King Stars
Instead, the slow bowlers excelled, spearheaded by Alana King, whose performance could have been even more productive if Beth Mooney hadn’t missed one in the slips.
Other spin bowlers Wareham (2-22 off seven overs) and Gardner (two for 48 off nine overs) both contributed, while Sutherland consolidated her standing as the competition's top wicket-taker with her 2-41, bringing her tally to thirteen.
A batter's 44 runs and Mostary’s unbeaten 66 runs off 80 deliveries took Bangladesh to their record total against the Aussies, but the target was made to look straightforward by a team who had chased down 330 against India four days before.
“It's fantastic when you’ve got the ‘Q’ next to your name in a World Cup,” said star performer King. “Certainly it doesn’t stop here. We anticipate returning to Indore to take on the English team and South Africa.”
