Alyssa Healy has executed brilliant consecutive hundreds to guide her team into the last four of the Women's Cricket World Cup, motivating them to a dominant comprehensive victory over their opponents.
Healy finished not out on 113, coming just a few days after her equally impressive 142 that defeated the Indian team at the identical Vizag stadium. This time, she shared an undefeated 200-run opening partnership with Phoebe Litchfield (84 not out) to dash to their target of 199 runs in just under 25 overs.
“I thought I was a little bit poor with the gloves, and probably a bit as captain as well tonight, but we’ll take the win and move on,” she said.
Ironically, the supreme expertise of Thursday’s chase as the duo added 202 followed perhaps the team's shoddiest performance in the fielding department under the captain's leadership, with the skipper scolding herself in especial for spilling two of the six chances that went down.
“I felt somewhat let down with my glovework, and I needed to compensate with the bat, and fortunately succeeded,” she added.
Since statistics was first taken on fielding performance metrics in the year 2013, the half-dozen dropped catches marked Australia’s poorest fielding showing at a World Cup tournament.
“Perhaps it’s just that phase of the competition – we’ve been here a while, and it’s something we’ll analyze,” the captain commented.
It helped the opposition to manage 9-198 after they had opted to bat, their best-ever score in an ODI against Australia, with Sobhana Mostary scoring the maiden half-century ever for the Asian side against the reigning champions.
But Alana King mesmeric unbroken ten-over bowling performance, in which she claimed two wickets for 18 runs with four maidens, was crucial to ensuring Australia’s chase wasn’t too challenging.
Healy Pleased with Win that Seals Semi-Final Spot
The Australian skipper was delighted to discover that the triumph, which puts her undefeated team top of the group table on nine points after four wins and a wash-out, guarantees them a place in the semi-finals. “That's great news,” she exclaimed.
The experienced skipper sped to her hundred off just 73 balls, the fastest hundred of the tournament, and finished with 20 boundaries off the 77 balls she faced as she pulled away from her partner later in the innings after they had gone almost shot for shot towards their half-centuries.
The Opener Impresses with Maiden Tournament Half-Century
The young batter Phoebe Litchfield struck 12 fours and one maximum, getting to her maiden World Cup fifty off 46 balls shortly after Healy got there off 43. They went on to achieve the third-best stand by any Aussie duo at a World Cup event.
Earlier, during the subpar fielding display, the captain dropped the easiest of edges off Darcie Brown and also was unable to grasp a difficult lofted one off another bowler. Annoyingly, she also take a clean chance off Brown but failed to review when the official turned down their appeal.
The recalled Brown sent down the fastest balls at the World Cup so far but was nonetheless the Aussies’ costliest bowling option, going for 0-52 off her nine overs.
Spin Attack Excel as Alana King Stars
Instead, the spinners excelled, led by Alana King, whose spell could have been even more productive if Beth Mooney hadn’t dropped one in the slip cordon.
Other spinners Wareham (two for 22 off seven overs) and Ash Gardner (2-48 off nine) both contributed, while Sutherland strengthened her position as the competition's top wicket-taker with her 2-41, bringing her total to thirteen.
A batter's 44 and another's unbeaten 66 off 80 balls took Bangladesh to their record score against the Aussies, but the total was rendered straightforward by a side who had successfully pursued 330 runs against India four 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. “No doubt it won't end here. We anticipate going back to Indore to take on the English team and the Proteas.”
