Alyssa Healy has delivered outstanding consecutive centuries to lead her team into the semi-finals of the World Cup, motivating them to a commanding 10-wicket trouncing over Bangladesh.
The wicketkeeper-batter finished unbeaten on 113 runs, arriving just a few days after her similarly brilliant 142-run knock that saw off the Indian team at the same Vizag stadium. This time, she shared an undefeated 200-run opening partnership with Phoebe Litchfield (84 not out) to dash to their goal of 199 in just under 25 overs.
“I thought I was a little bit poor with the gloves, and probably a bit as skipper as well tonight, but we’ll accept the win and move on,” she said.
Ironically, the supreme expertise of Thursday’s run-chase as the pair added 202 followed perhaps Australia’s poorest performance in the field under the captain's stewardship, with the skipper scolding herself in particular for spilling a couple of the six catches that were missed.
“I was a little bit disappointed with my glovework, and I needed to compensate with the batting, and fortunately got the job done,” Healy continued.
Since statistics was initially recorded on fielding performance metrics in 2013, the six dropped opportunities marked Australia’s worst fielding display at a World Cup tournament.
“Maybe it’s just that phase of the tournament – 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 total in an One-Day International against Australia, with Sobhana Mostary scoring the first half-century ever for the Asian side against the world champions.
But Alana King spellbinding continuous ten-over bowling performance, in which she claimed two wickets for 18 runs with four maidens, was key to making sure the team's chase remained manageable.
Healy Delighted with Win that Confirms Semi-Final Place
The Australian skipper was delighted to discover that the triumph, which puts her undefeated side top of the standings on nine points after four victories and a wash-out, secures them a place in the last-four. “That’s really cool,” she exclaimed.
The experienced captain raced to her hundred off just 73 deliveries, the fastest century of the World Cup, and ended with 20 boundaries off the 77 balls she confronted as she pulled away from Litchfield in the latter stages in the innings after they had gone almost boundary-for-boundary towards their fifties.
Litchfield Impresses with First World Cup Fifty
Left-hander Phoebe Litchfield hit 12 boundaries and one maximum, reaching to her maiden World Cup half-century off 46 deliveries shortly after Healy got there off 43 balls. They went on to achieve the third-best partnership by any Australian duo at a Women’s World Cup.
In the first innings, during the subpar fielding display, the captain dropped the easiest of chances off a teammate and also failed to hold on to a tough skied one off another bowler. Annoyingly, she also did take a clear catch off Brown but failed to review when the official rejected their appeal.
The recalled Brown bowled the quickest deliveries at the tournament so far but was nonetheless the Aussies’ most expensive bowler, going for 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spin Attack Excel as Alana King Leads
Instead, the spinners thrived, led by King, whose performance could have been even more productive if Beth Mooney hadn’t missed one in the slip cordon.
Other spin bowlers Georgia Wareham (2-22 off seven overs) and Gardner (2-48 off nine overs) both chipped in, while Annabel Sutherland consolidated her position as the competition's leading wicket-taker with her two for 41, bringing her tally to 13.
Rubya Haider’s 44 runs and another's not out 66 off 80 balls took the team to their record total against the Australians, but the target was rendered straightforward by a team who had chased down 330 against the Indian side a few days before.
“It's great when you’ve got the ‘Q’ next to your name in a global tournament,” said star performer King. “No doubt it won't end here. We look forward to going back to Indore to face the English team and South Africa.”
