Alyssa Healy has produced superb back-to-back hundreds to steer her team into the last four of the Women's Cricket World Cup, driving them to a commanding comprehensive trouncing over their opponents.
The wicketkeeper-batter finished not out on 113, arriving just four days after her equally impressive 142-run knock that saw off hosts India at the identical Vizag venue. This time, she combined in an undefeated double-century opening partnership with Phoebe Litchfield (84no) to dash to their goal of 199 runs in just 24.5 overs.
“I felt I was a not at my best with the gloves, and probably a little bit as captain as well tonight, but we’ll accept the two points and move on,” she said.
Interestingly, the supreme professionalism of Thursday’s chase as the duo added 202 came after possibly Australia’s shoddiest performance in the field under Healy’s stewardship, with the captain criticizing herself in particular for dropping two of the half-dozen catches that went down.
“I was a little bit disappointed with my glovework, and I needed to compensate with the batting, and luckily got the job done,” she added.
From the time statistics was initially taken on fielding statistics in the year 2013, the half-dozen dropped catches represented the team's worst fielding showing at a Women’s World Cup.
“Maybe it’s just that phase of the tournament – we’ve been here a while, and it’s an issue we’ll review,” the captain said.
It helped the opposition to manage 9-198 after they had opted to bat, their best-ever total in an One-Day International against the Aussies, with a key batter scoring the first half-century ever for the Bangladeshi team against the world champions.
But Alana King spellbinding continuous 10-over spell, in which she took 2-18 with four maidens, was key to making sure Australia’s target remained manageable.
The Captain Delighted with Victory that Confirms Knockout Place
Healy was pleased to learn that the victory, which puts her undefeated team top of the group table on nine points after four wins and a wash-out, secures them a place in the last-four. “That's fantastic,” she said.
The 35-year-old captain raced to her century off just 73 deliveries, the quickest hundred of the tournament, and finished with 20 fours off the 77 deliveries she confronted as she accelerated from Litchfield later in the innings after they had gone almost shot for shot towards their fifties.
Litchfield Shines with Maiden Tournament Half-Century
The young batter Phoebe Litchfield struck 12 boundaries and one maximum, reaching to her first World Cup fifty off 46 balls shortly after her partner got there off 43 balls. They went on to record the third-best partnership by any Aussie duo at a Women’s World Cup.
Earlier, during the subpar fielding effort, Healy spilled the easiest of chances off a teammate and also failed to grasp a tough lofted one off another bowler. Frustratingly, she also did take a clean chance off Brown but failed to review when the official turned down their appeal.
The recalled Darcie Brown sent down the quickest balls at the World Cup so far but was nonetheless the team's most expensive bowler, conceding 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spin Attack Thrive as Alana King Stars
Instead, the spinners thrived, spearheaded by Alana King, whose performance could have been even more productive if Beth Mooney hadn’t missed one in the slip cordon.
Fellow spinners 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, taking her total to thirteen.
Rubya Haider’s 44 runs and another's unbeaten 66 off 80 balls took Bangladesh to their record total against the Australians, but the total was rendered easy meat by a side who had chased down 330 against the Indian side four days earlier.
“It’s always nice when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a World Cup,” said player-of-the-match King. “Certainly it doesn’t stop here. We look forward to returning to the next venue to take on the English team and South Africa.”
