Alyssa Healy has delivered brilliant back-to-back centuries to guide her team into the last four of the World Cup, inspiring them to a merciless comprehensive victory over their opponents.
The wicketkeeper-batter finished unbeaten on 113, arriving just four days after her similarly impressive 142-run knock that saw off hosts India at the same Visakhapatnam stadium. This time, she combined in an unbroken 200-run opening partnership with Phoebe Litchfield (84no) to dash to their goal of 199 in just under 25 overs.
“I felt I was a below par behind the stumps, and probably a bit as captain as well tonight, but we’ll accept the two points and progress,” she said.
Interestingly, the utmost expertise of the day's run-chase as the duo added 202 came after perhaps Australia’s shoddiest performance in the field under Healy’s stewardship, with the skipper criticizing herself in especial for dropping a couple of the half-dozen catches that were missed.
“I was a little bit disappointed with my glovework, and I needed to compensate with the batting, and luckily succeeded,” she added.
Since statistics was initially recorded on fielding performance statistics in the year 2013, the half-dozen dropped opportunities marked the team's worst fielding display at a World Cup tournament.
“Perhaps it’s just that time of the tournament – we’ve been here a while, and it’s an issue we’ll review,” Healy commented.
This allowed Bangladesh to eke out 198 for 9 after they had chosen to bat first, their highest score in an One-Day International against Australia, with a key batter scoring the first fifty ever for the Bangladeshi team against the world champions.
But the spinner's spellbinding unbroken ten-over spell, in which she claimed two wickets for 18 runs with four maidens, was vital to making sure the team's target remained manageable.
The Captain Delighted with Win that Confirms Knockout Place
Healy 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 berth in the last-four. “That’s really cool,” she exclaimed.
The experienced captain sped to her hundred off just 73 balls, the fastest century of the tournament, and finished with 20 fours off the 77 deliveries she confronted as she pulled away from Litchfield later in the innings after they had gone practically shot for shot towards their half-centuries.
Litchfield Impresses with First Tournament Fifty
Left-hander Phoebe Litchfield struck 12 fours and one maximum, getting to her maiden World Cup half-century off 46 balls shortly after her partner got there off 43. They went on to achieve the third-highest partnership by any Aussie pair 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 take a clear catch off the same bowler but failed to review when the official rejected their shout.
The reinstated Brown bowled the quickest balls at the World Cup so far but was nonetheless the team's most expensive bowler, going for 0-52 off her nine overs.
Spin Attack Excel as King Leads
Instead, the spinners thrived, led by King, whose performance could have been more successful if Beth Mooney hadn’t dropped one in the slips.
Fellow spin bowlers Wareham (2-22 off seven overs) and Gardner (2-48 off nine overs) both contributed, while Sutherland strengthened her standing as the tournament’s leading wicket-taker with her 2-41, taking her tally to 13.
A batter's 44 and Mostary’s unbeaten 66 off 80 balls took Bangladesh to their record score against the Aussies, but the target was rendered easy meat by a team who had successfully pursued 330 runs against India a few days earlier.
“It's great when you’ve got the ‘Q’ next to your name in a global tournament,” remarked star performer King. “No doubt it won't end here. We anticipate returning to the next venue to take on the English team and the Proteas.”
