Alyssa Healy has produced brilliant back-to-back hundreds to steer her squad into the last four of the Women's Cricket World Cup, motivating them to a commanding 10-wicket trouncing over Bangladesh.
The wicketkeeper-batter finished unbeaten on 113, arriving just a few days after her similarly stellar 142 that defeated the Indian team at the identical Visakhapatnam stadium. This time, she shared an unbroken double-century opening partnership with Phoebe Litchfield (84 not out) to dash to their target of 199 in just 24.5 overs.
“I thought I was a little bit poor with the gloves, and probably a bit as captain as well today, but we’ll take the two points and move on,” she said.
Interestingly, the utmost expertise of Thursday’s chase as the pair added 202 runs came after possibly the team's poorest performance in the fielding department under Healy’s leadership, with the captain criticizing herself in especial for dropping 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 bat, and luckily succeeded,” she added.
From the time data was initially taken on fielding statistics in 2013, the six dropped opportunities represented Australia’s poorest fielding showing at a World Cup tournament.
“Maybe it’s just that time of the tournament – we’ve been here a little while, and it’s something we’ll analyze,” the captain commented.
It helped Bangladesh to eke out 198 for 9 after they had opted to bat first, their highest score in an One-Day International against the Aussies, with Sobhana Mostary scoring the first fifty ever for the Asian side against the world champions.
But Alana King mesmeric continuous ten-over spell, in which she claimed 2-18 with four maidens, was vital to ensuring the team's chase wasn’t too challenging.
Healy Delighted with Victory that Seals Knockout Spot
Healy was delighted to discover that the triumph, which puts her unbeaten side at the top of the group table on nine points after four wins and a wash-out, guarantees them a berth in the semi-finals. “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 deliveries she confronted as she accelerated from her partner later in the knock after they had gone practically boundary-for-boundary towards their fifties.
The Opener Shines with Maiden World Cup Fifty
The young batter Phoebe Litchfield hit 12 fours and one maximum, getting to her maiden World Cup fifty off 46 balls soon after Healy reached hers off 43. They went on to achieve the third-best stand by any Australian duo at a World Cup event.
Earlier, during the subpar fielding display, Healy spilled the easiest of edges off a teammate and also failed to grasp a difficult lofted one off Annabel Sutherland. Frustratingly, she also take a clean chance off Brown but failed to review when the umpire turned down their shout.
The reinstated Darcie Brown sent down the fastest balls at the World Cup so far but was nonetheless the Aussies’ most expensive bowling option, going for 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spinners Thrive as King Stars
In contrast, 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.
Fellow spinners Georgia Wareham (2-22 off seven) and Ash Gardner (two for 48 off nine) both contributed, while Annabel Sutherland consolidated her standing as the competition's leading wicket-taker with her two for 41, bringing her total to 13.
Rubya Haider’s 44 and Mostary’s unbeaten 66 runs off 80 deliveries took Bangladesh to their highest-ever total against the Australians, but the total was rendered straightforward by a side who had chased down 330 runs against the Indian side a few days earlier.
“It's great when you’ve got the ‘Q’ next to your name in a World Cup,” said star performer King. “No doubt it won't end here. We look forward to returning to Indore to face the English team and South Africa.”
