Alyssa Healy has delivered outstanding back-to-back hundreds to guide her team into the semi-finals of the Women's Cricket World Cup, motivating them to a commanding comprehensive trouncing over their opponents.
Healy finished unbeaten on 113, arriving just a few days after her equally impressive 142 that defeated hosts India at the identical Visakhapatnam stadium. This time, she combined in an undefeated double-century opening partnership with her opening partner (84no) to chase to their target of 199 in just under 25 overs.
“I felt I was a below par with the gloves, and perhaps a bit as captain as well today, but we’ll take the two points and progress,” she said.
Ironically, the utmost professionalism of the day's chase as the pair put on 202 followed perhaps the team's shoddiest performance in the fielding department under the captain's leadership, with the skipper scolding herself in particular for spilling two of the half-dozen catches that were missed.
“I was a little bit disappointed with my wicketkeeping, and I had a little bit to make up for with the bat, and fortunately got the job done,” she added.
Since data was first taken on fielding performance statistics in 2013, the half-dozen missed catches marked Australia’s poorest fielding display 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 an issue we’ll review,” the captain commented.
This allowed Bangladesh to manage 9-198 after they had opted to bat first, their best-ever total in an ODI against the Aussies, with a key batter scoring the first fifty ever for the Asian side against the world champions.
But Alana King mesmeric unbroken ten-over bowling performance, in which she claimed 2-18 with four maiden overs, was vital to making sure the team's target wasn’t too challenging.
The Captain Delighted with Win that Confirms Semi-Final Spot
The Australian skipper was delighted to discover that the victory, which places her unbeaten team top of the group table on nine points after four victories and a wash-out, secures them a place in the last-four. “That's great news,” she said.
The experienced captain sped to her century off just 73 deliveries, the quickest century of the tournament, and finished with 20 fours off the 77 deliveries she confronted as she pulled away from Litchfield in the latter stages in the knock after they had gone practically boundary-for-boundary towards their half-centuries.
Litchfield Impresses with First World Cup Fifty
The young batter Phoebe Litchfield struck 12 boundaries and one maximum, reaching to her maiden tournament half-century off 46 balls shortly after her partner got there off 43. They went on to record the third-highest partnership by any Aussie pair at a Women’s World Cup.
Earlier, during the subpar fielding effort, the captain spilled the simplest of edges off a teammate and also failed to grasp a tough skied one off another bowler. Frustratingly, she also did take a clean chance off the same bowler but failed to review when the umpire turned down their shout.
The recalled Darcie Brown sent down the quickest deliveries at the tournament so far but was nonetheless the Aussies’ costliest bowling option, conceding 0-52 off her nine overs.
Spinners Excel as King Leads
In contrast, the slow bowlers thrived, led by King, whose performance could have been even more productive if a fielder hadn’t dropped one in the slip cordon.
Other spinners Wareham (2-22 off seven) and Ash Gardner (2-48 off nine overs) both chipped in, while Sutherland strengthened her position as the tournament’s leading wicket-taker with her two for 41, bringing her total to thirteen.
Rubya Haider’s 44 and Mostary’s not out 66 runs off 80 deliveries took the team to their highest-ever total against the Aussies, but the total was made to look straightforward by a team who had chased down 330 runs against India four days before.
“It's great when you’ve got the ‘Q’ next to your name in a World Cup,” remarked player-of-the-match Alana King. “Certainly it won't end here. We anticipate going back to the next venue to take on England and the Proteas.”
