Alyssa Healy has delivered superb consecutive hundreds to lead her squad into the semi-finals of the Women's Cricket World Cup, driving them to a merciless comprehensive trouncing over Bangladesh.
The wicketkeeper-batter finished unbeaten on 113, coming just a few days after her similarly impressive 142 that defeated the Indian team at the same Vizag stadium. This time, she shared an unbroken double-century first-wicket stand with Phoebe Litchfield (84no) to race to their goal of 199 runs in just 24.5 overs.
“I thought I was a below par with the gloves, and perhaps a bit as skipper as well today, but we’ll accept the two points and move on,” she said.
Interestingly, the utmost professionalism of Thursday’s chase as the pair added 202 came after perhaps Australia’s weakest performance in the field under Healy’s leadership, with the skipper criticizing herself in especial for dropping two of the six chances that were missed.
“I felt somewhat let down with my wicketkeeping, and I needed to compensate with the bat, and luckily succeeded,” Healy continued.
From the time statistics was initially taken on fielding performance statistics in 2013, the half-dozen missed catches represented Australia’s worst fielding showing at a Women’s World Cup.
“Perhaps it’s just that time of the competition – we’ve been here a little while, and it’s something we’ll reflect on,” Healy commented.
This allowed the opposition to eke out 198 for 9 after they had chosen to bat, their best-ever score in an ODI against Australia, with a key batter compiling the first half-century ever for the Bangladeshi team against the reigning champions.
But the spinner's mesmeric continuous ten-over spell, in which she took 2-18 with four maiden overs, was crucial to ensuring the team's target wasn’t too challenging.
The Captain Delighted with Victory that Confirms Semi-Final Spot
Healy was thrilled to learn that the triumph, which puts her unbeaten side at the top of the standings on nine points after four wins and a abandoned match, guarantees them a place in the semi-finals. “That’s really cool,” she said.
The 35-year-old captain raced to her hundred off just 73 balls, the quickest hundred of the tournament, and ended with 20 boundaries off the 77 deliveries she confronted as she accelerated from Litchfield in the latter stages in the knock after they had gone almost shot for shot towards their half-centuries.
Litchfield Shines with First World Cup Fifty
The young batter Litchfield struck 12 fours and one maximum, getting to her first tournament fifty off 46 deliveries shortly after her partner got there off 43 balls. They went on to achieve the third-highest partnership by any Australian pair at a Women’s World Cup.
In the first innings, during the subpar fielding display, the captain dropped the easiest of edges off a teammate and also failed to grasp a difficult skied one off Annabel Sutherland. Annoyingly, she also take a clean chance off the same bowler but failed to review when the official turned down their appeal.
The reinstated Darcie Brown bowled the quickest deliveries at the tournament so far but was nonetheless the Aussies’ costliest bowling option, going for 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spinners Excel as King Stars
Instead, the spinners thrived, spearheaded by King, whose performance could have been even more productive if Beth Mooney hadn’t dropped one in the slips.
Other spinners Wareham (2-22 off seven overs) and Ash Gardner (two for 48 off nine overs) both contributed, while Sutherland strengthened her standing as the tournament’s leading wicket-taker with her two for 41, taking her total to thirteen.
Rubya Haider’s 44 and Mostary’s not out 66 off 80 balls took Bangladesh to their highest-ever score against the Aussies, but the target was made to look easy meat by a team who had successfully pursued 330 runs against India four days earlier.
“It’s always nice when you’ve got the ‘Q’ next to your name in a World Cup,” remarked star performer Alana King. “Certainly it doesn’t stop here. We anticipate going back to the next venue to face England and the Proteas.”
