Alyssa Healy has produced outstanding consecutive hundreds to steer her squad into the semi-finals of the World Cup, motivating them to a merciless comprehensive win over Bangladesh.
Healy finished not out on 113, arriving just a few days after her equally stellar 142-run knock that saw off the Indian team at the same Visakhapatnam venue. This time, she combined in an unbroken 200-run opening partnership with her opening partner (84no) to dash to their goal of 199 in just 24.5 deliveries.
“I thought I was a below par with the gloves, and probably a bit as captain as well tonight, but we’ll take the two points and progress,” she said.
Ironically, the supreme expertise of Thursday’s chase as the duo put on 202 runs followed possibly the team's poorest performance in the field under the captain's stewardship, with the captain criticizing herself in particular for spilling a couple of the half-dozen catches that were missed.
“I felt somewhat let down with my wicketkeeping, and I needed to compensate with the bat, and luckily delivered,” Healy continued.
Since statistics was first taken on fielding performance statistics in the year 2013, the six dropped opportunities marked Australia’s poorest fielding showing at a Women’s World Cup.
“Perhaps it’s just that time of the competition – we’ve been here a while, and it’s something we’ll analyze,” the captain said.
It helped Bangladesh to eke out 198 for 9 after they had chosen to bat first, their best-ever score in an One-Day International against the Aussies, with a key batter scoring the maiden fifty ever for the Bangladeshi team against the reigning champions.
But the spinner's mesmeric continuous 10-over spell, in which she claimed two wickets for 18 runs with four maidens, was vital to ensuring Australia’s target wasn’t too challenging.
The Captain Delighted with Victory that Seals Knockout Place
The Australian skipper was pleased to discover that the victory, which puts her unbeaten team top of the standings on nine points after four victories and a abandoned match, secures them a place in the last-four. “That’s really cool,” she exclaimed.
The experienced captain raced to her century off just 73 balls, 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 in the latter stages in the knock after they had gone almost shot for shot towards their fifties.
The Opener Impresses with Maiden Tournament Fifty
Left-hander Litchfield struck 12 fours and a six, getting to her first World Cup fifty off 46 balls shortly after her partner reached hers off 43. They went on to record the third-best stand by any Aussie pair at a World Cup event.
In the first innings, during the sluggish fielding display, Healy dropped the easiest of edges off a teammate and also failed to hold on to a difficult lofted one off Annabel Sutherland. Annoyingly, she also take a clean chance off Brown but didn’t have it reviewed when the official turned down their shout.
The recalled Darcie Brown sent down the fastest balls at the tournament so far but was nonetheless the Aussies’ most expensive bowling option, conceding 0-52 off her nine overs.
Spinners Thrive as Alana King Stars
In contrast, the slow bowlers thrived, spearheaded by Alana King, whose spell could have been even more productive if a fielder hadn’t dropped one in the slip cordon.
Other spinners Georgia Wareham (two for 22 off seven overs) and Ash Gardner (two for 48 off nine overs) both contributed, while Annabel Sutherland consolidated her standing as the competition's leading wicket-taker with her two for 41, bringing her tally to 13.
Rubya Haider’s 44 runs and Mostary’s unbeaten 66 runs off 80 balls took the team to their highest-ever score against the Australians, but the total was made to look easy meat by a side who had successfully pursued 330 against India a few days earlier.
“It's great when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a World Cup,” said player-of-the-match Alana King. “Certainly it doesn’t stop here. We anticipate returning to Indore to face England and the Proteas.”
