Alyssa Healy has produced brilliant back-to-back centuries to steer her squad into the last four of the Women's Cricket World Cup, driving them to a dominant 10-wicket victory over Bangladesh.
The wicketkeeper-batter finished not out on 113, arriving just four days after her similarly impressive 142-run knock that defeated hosts India at the same Visakhapatnam venue. This time, she combined in an undefeated 200-run opening partnership with her opening partner (84 not out) to dash to their goal of 199 runs in just under 25 deliveries.
“I felt I was a below par with the gloves, and probably a bit as skipper as well today, but we’ll take the win and move on,” she said.
Ironically, the supreme professionalism of Thursday’s chase as the duo added 202 runs came after perhaps the team's weakest performance in the field under the captain's stewardship, with the captain criticizing herself in especial for dropping two of the half-dozen chances that were missed.
“I was a little bit disappointed with my wicketkeeping, and I had a little bit to make up for with the batting, and fortunately succeeded,” Healy continued.
Since data was initially taken on fielding performance metrics in 2013, the six dropped catches represented Australia’s poorest fielding showing at a Women’s World Cup.
“Perhaps it’s just that time of the competition – we’ve been here a while, and it’s an issue we’ll analyze,” the captain said.
This allowed Bangladesh to manage 9-198 after they had opted to bat, their best-ever total in an ODI against the Aussies, with a key batter compiling the first fifty ever for the Bangladeshi team against the world champions.
But Alana King mesmeric unbroken 10-over bowling performance, in which she claimed 2-18 with four maidens, was key to ensuring the team's chase wasn’t too challenging.
Healy Pleased with Win that Confirms Knockout Spot
Healy was pleased to discover that the victory, which puts her unbeaten team top of the standings on nine points after four wins and a abandoned match, secures them a place in the last-four. “That's great news,” she said.
The 35-year-old captain raced to her century off just 73 deliveries, the quickest century of the World Cup, and finished 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.
Litchfield Shines with First World Cup Fifty
The young batter Phoebe Litchfield hit 12 fours and a six, reaching to her first tournament half-century off 46 deliveries shortly after Healy got there off 43. They went on to achieve the third-highest stand by any Australian duo at a World Cup event.
In the first innings, during the sluggish fielding display, Healy spilled the simplest of chances off a teammate and also was unable to hold on to a difficult skied one off another bowler. Frustratingly, she also did take a clear chance off the same bowler but didn’t have it reviewed when the official rejected their appeal.
The recalled Brown bowled the quickest balls at the World Cup so far but was still the Aussies’ most expensive bowling option, conceding 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spin Attack Thrive as Alana King Leads
In contrast, the spinners thrived, led by King, whose spell could have been more successful if a fielder hadn’t missed one in the slips.
Fellow spin bowlers 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 2-41, bringing her total to thirteen.
A batter's 44 and another's unbeaten 66 runs off 80 balls took Bangladesh to their highest-ever score against the Australians, but the target was rendered easy meat by a team who had successfully pursued 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 returning to the next venue to take on England and the Proteas.”
