Alyssa Healy has produced superb back-to-back centuries to guide her team into the last four of the World Cup, driving them to a merciless comprehensive win over Bangladesh.
The wicketkeeper-batter finished not out on 113 runs, coming just a few days after her similarly impressive 142 that defeated the Indian team at the identical Vizag venue. This time, she shared an undefeated 200-run opening partnership with Phoebe Litchfield (84no) to race to their goal of 199 runs in just 24.5 deliveries.
“I thought I was a little bit poor with the gloves, and probably a bit as captain as well today, but we’ll accept the two points and move on,” Healy remarked.
Interestingly, the supreme expertise of Thursday’s run-chase as the pair added 202 runs came after perhaps Australia’s shoddiest display in the field under the captain's leadership, with the captain scolding herself in especial for spilling two of the six chances that went down.
“I was a little bit disappointed with my glovework, and I needed to compensate with the bat, and luckily got the job done,” she added.
From the time statistics was first taken on fielding performance metrics in 2013, the six missed catches represented Australia’s worst fielding display at a World Cup tournament.
“Perhaps it’s just that phase of the tournament – we’ve been here a while, and it’s something we’ll reflect on,” the captain commented.
It helped the opposition to eke out 9-198 after they had opted to bat first, their best-ever total in an ODI against Australia, with Sobhana Mostary scoring the maiden fifty ever for the Asian side against the reigning champions.
But the spinner's mesmeric unbroken ten-over spell, in which she took two wickets for 18 runs with four maiden overs, was crucial to ensuring Australia’s chase wasn’t too challenging.
The Captain Pleased with Win that Confirms Knockout Place
The Australian skipper was pleased to learn that the triumph, which puts her undefeated side top of the standings on nine points after four wins and a abandoned match, secures them a berth in the semi-finals. “That's great news,” she said.
The 35-year-old skipper sped to her hundred off just 73 balls, the quickest hundred of the World Cup, and ended with 20 boundaries off the 77 deliveries she faced as she pulled away from her partner in the latter stages in the innings after they had gone almost boundary-for-boundary towards their half-centuries.
The Opener Shines with First Tournament Half-Century
Left-hander Litchfield hit 12 fours and a six, reaching to her first World Cup half-century off 46 deliveries soon after Healy got there off 43 balls. They went on to achieve the third-best stand by any Australian duo at a Women’s World Cup.
In the first innings, during the sluggish fielding display, the captain spilled the simplest of chances off a teammate and also failed to grasp a tough skied one off another bowler. Annoyingly, she also did take a clear chance off the same bowler but failed to review when the umpire rejected their shout.
The recalled Brown sent down the fastest balls at the World Cup so far but was nonetheless the team's costliest bowler, going for 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spinners Thrive as Alana King Stars
Instead, the spinners thrived, led by Alana King, whose spell could have been even more productive if a fielder hadn’t dropped one in the slips.
Other spinners Wareham (2-22 off seven) and Gardner (two for 48 off nine overs) both chipped in, while Annabel Sutherland strengthened her position as the tournament’s top wicket-taker with her two for 41, taking her total to 13.
A batter's 44 runs and Mostary’s not out 66 off 80 deliveries took the team to their record score against the Australians, but the total was made to look easy meat by a side who had successfully pursued 330 against the Indian side four days earlier.
“It’s always nice when you’ve got the ‘Q’ next to your name in a global tournament,” said player-of-the-match Alana King. “Certainly it doesn’t stop here. We look forward to returning to Indore to face the English team and South Africa.”
