Alyssa Healy has executed brilliant consecutive centuries to guide her team into the semi-finals of the World Cup, driving them to a commanding comprehensive victory over their opponents.
The wicketkeeper-batter remained not out on 113 runs, arriving just four days after her similarly brilliant 142-run knock that saw off the Indian team at the same Visakhapatnam stadium. This time, she shared an unbroken 200-run opening partnership with her opening partner (84 not out) to chase to their target of 199 in just under 25 deliveries.
“I felt I was a not at my best with the gloves, and perhaps a bit as captain as well tonight, but we’ll accept the two points and move on,” she said.
Ironically, the utmost professionalism of the day's run-chase as the pair added 202 followed possibly the team's shoddiest display in the fielding department under the captain's leadership, with the captain criticizing herself in particular for spilling a couple of the six chances that went down.
“I was a little bit disappointed with my wicketkeeping, and I had a little bit to make up for with the bat, and luckily delivered,” she added.
Since statistics was first taken on fielding performance metrics in 2013, the six dropped opportunities marked Australia’s poorest fielding display at a Women’s World Cup.
“Perhaps it’s just that time of the tournament – we’ve been here a while, and it’s an issue we’ll analyze,” Healy said.
This allowed Bangladesh to eke out 198 for 9 after they had chosen to bat, their highest score in an One-Day International against Australia, with Sobhana Mostary compiling the first fifty ever for the Bangladeshi team against the world champions.
But Alana King spellbinding unbroken 10-over spell, in which she claimed 2-18 with four maiden overs, was key to making sure Australia’s target wasn’t too challenging.
The Captain Pleased with Win that Seals Knockout Place
Healy was thrilled to discover that the triumph, which places her unbeaten side at the top of the standings on nine points after four wins and a abandoned match, secures them a berth in the semi-finals. “That's great news,” she said.
The experienced skipper raced to her century off just 73 balls, the quickest century of the tournament, and finished with 20 boundaries off the 77 balls she confronted as she pulled away from Litchfield later in the innings after they had gone almost boundary-for-boundary towards their half-centuries.
The Opener Impresses with First World Cup Fifty
The young batter Litchfield struck 12 fours and one maximum, getting to her first World Cup half-century off 46 balls soon after Healy got there off 43. They went on to achieve the third-best stand by any Australian pair at a Women’s World Cup.
Earlier, during the subpar fielding display, Healy dropped the easiest 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 failed to review when the umpire rejected their shout.
The reinstated Brown bowled the quickest balls at the World Cup so far but was still the Aussies’ costliest bowler, conceding 0-52 off her nine overs.
Spin Attack Thrive as King Leads
Instead, the slow bowlers thrived, led by King, whose spell could have been even more productive if a fielder hadn’t missed one in the slips.
Other spin bowlers Wareham (2-22 off seven overs) and Gardner (2-48 off nine overs) both chipped in, while Annabel Sutherland strengthened her standing as the competition's leading wicket-taker with her two for 41, bringing her total to 13.
A batter's 44 and Mostary’s not out 66 runs off 80 deliveries took the team to their highest-ever total against the Aussies, but the total was rendered easy meat by a team who had successfully pursued 330 runs 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 star performer Alana King. “No doubt it won't end here. We anticipate going back to Indore to face England and the Proteas.”
