Alyssa Healy has executed brilliant consecutive hundreds to lead her squad into the semi-finals of the Women's Cricket World Cup, driving them to a dominant comprehensive trouncing over their opponents.
The wicketkeeper-batter finished unbeaten on 113 runs, arriving just four days after her similarly brilliant 142-run knock that defeated the Indian team at the same Visakhapatnam stadium. This time, she combined in an unbroken 200-run opening partnership with her opening partner (84no) to dash to their goal of 199 runs in just 24.5 overs.
“I thought I was a not at my best with the gloves, and perhaps a little bit as captain as well tonight, but we’ll take the win and progress,” Healy remarked.
Ironically, the utmost professionalism of the day's chase as the duo added 202 runs followed perhaps the team's poorest display in the field under Healy’s leadership, with the skipper scolding herself in especial for dropping a couple of the half-dozen catches that went down.
“I was a little bit disappointed with my wicketkeeping, and I had a little bit to make up for with the batting, and luckily delivered,” she added.
From the time statistics was initially recorded on fielding metrics in 2013, the half-dozen dropped opportunities represented Australia’s worst fielding showing at a Women’s World Cup.
“Maybe it’s just that time of the tournament – we’ve been here a little while, and it’s an issue we’ll analyze,” Healy said.
It helped Bangladesh to eke out 198 for 9 after they had opted to bat first, their best-ever total in an ODI against Australia, with Sobhana Mostary compiling the maiden half-century ever for the Bangladeshi team against the world champions.
But Alana King mesmeric unbroken ten-over spell, in which she claimed two wickets for 18 runs with four maidens, was crucial to making sure Australia’s chase wasn’t too challenging.
Healy Delighted with Win that Confirms Semi-Final Spot
Healy was pleased to discover that the victory, which places her undefeated side at the top of the standings on nine points after four victories and a abandoned match, secures them a berth in the semi-finals. “That's fantastic,” she said.
The experienced skipper raced to her century off just 73 balls, the fastest hundred of the tournament, and ended with 20 boundaries off the 77 balls she confronted as she accelerated from Litchfield in the latter stages in the knock after they had gone almost boundary-for-boundary towards their half-centuries.
The Opener Shines with First World Cup Fifty
The young batter Phoebe Litchfield hit 12 fours and one maximum, getting to her first tournament half-century off 46 balls soon after her partner reached hers off 43. They went on to achieve the third-best stand by any Aussie pair at a World Cup event.
In the first innings, during the sluggish fielding effort, Healy dropped the easiest of edges off Darcie Brown and also was unable to grasp a difficult lofted one off Annabel Sutherland. Frustratingly, she also did take a clear catch off Brown but failed to review when the official turned down their shout.
The recalled Brown sent down the fastest balls at the World Cup so far but was nonetheless the Aussies’ most expensive bowler, conceding 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spin Attack Excel as King Leads
Instead, the slow bowlers excelled, spearheaded by King, whose performance could have been even more productive if Beth Mooney hadn’t dropped one in the slip cordon.
Fellow spin bowlers Georgia Wareham (2-22 off seven overs) and Gardner (2-48 off nine overs) both chipped in, while Annabel Sutherland strengthened her standing as the tournament’s leading wicket-taker with her 2-41, bringing her total to 13.
A batter's 44 and Mostary’s not out 66 runs off 80 balls took Bangladesh to their record total against the Australians, but the target was rendered straightforward by a side who had chased down 330 against the Indian side a few days before.
“It’s always nice when you’ve got the ‘Q’ next to your name in a World Cup,” said player-of-the-match King. “Certainly it won't end here. We anticipate going back to Indore to take on the English team and the Proteas.”
