Alyssa Healy has produced outstanding back-to-back hundreds to guide her squad into the semi-finals of the Women's Cricket World Cup, driving them to a merciless 10-wicket trouncing over their opponents.
The wicketkeeper-batter finished not out on 113 runs, coming just a few days after her equally brilliant 142 that saw off the Indian team at the identical Visakhapatnam stadium. This time, she shared an undefeated double-century first-wicket stand with her opening partner (84 not out) to race to their target of 199 in just 24.5 deliveries.
“I felt I was a not at my best behind the stumps, and probably a bit as skipper as well today, but we’ll take the win and move on,” she said.
Interestingly, the supreme professionalism of the day's chase as the pair added 202 runs followed possibly Australia’s shoddiest performance in the field under the captain's stewardship, with the skipper scolding herself in especial for dropping two of the half-dozen chances that were missed.
“I felt somewhat let down with my glovework, and I had a little bit to make up for with the batting, and luckily succeeded,” Healy continued.
From the time statistics was initially recorded on fielding performance metrics in 2013, the six dropped opportunities marked Australia’s worst fielding showing at a World Cup tournament.
“Perhaps it’s just that phase of the competition – we’ve been here a while, and it’s something we’ll review,” Healy commented.
This allowed Bangladesh to manage 9-198 after they had chosen to bat, their highest score in an One-Day International against Australia, with Sobhana Mostary scoring the maiden fifty ever for the Asian side against the world champions.
But the spinner's mesmeric unbroken 10-over bowling performance, in which she claimed 2-18 with four maidens, was vital to making sure Australia’s chase wasn’t too challenging.
The Captain Delighted with Win that Seals Semi-Final Spot
The Australian skipper was delighted to discover that the victory, which places her unbeaten team at the top of the standings on nine points after four wins and a abandoned match, guarantees them a place in the semi-finals. “That's fantastic,” she exclaimed.
The 35-year-old captain sped to her hundred off just 73 deliveries, the fastest century of the tournament, and ended with 20 boundaries off the 77 balls she faced 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 Impresses with First World Cup Fifty
The young batter Phoebe Litchfield struck 12 fours and one maximum, getting to her first World Cup half-century off 46 deliveries shortly after her partner reached hers off 43. They went on to record the third-best stand by any Australian duo at a Women’s World Cup.
In the first innings, during the sluggish fielding display, Healy dropped the easiest of chances off a teammate and also was unable to grasp a tough skied one off Annabel Sutherland. Frustratingly, she also did take a clean catch off the same bowler but failed to review when the umpire turned down their shout.
The recalled Brown sent down the fastest deliveries at the tournament so far but was still the team's costliest bowler, going for 0-52 off her nine overs.
Spin Attack Excel as Alana King Stars
In contrast, the slow bowlers excelled, led by King, whose performance could have been even more productive if a fielder hadn’t dropped one in the slip cordon.
Fellow spin bowlers Wareham (two for 22 off seven overs) and Ash Gardner (two for 48 off nine overs) both contributed, while Sutherland strengthened her position as the tournament’s top wicket-taker with her 2-41, taking her tally to 13.
Rubya Haider’s 44 runs and Mostary’s not out 66 off 80 deliveries took the team to their record score against the Aussies, but the target was made to look easy meat by a team who had chased down 330 runs against the Indian side a few days before.
“It's fantastic when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a global tournament,” said player-of-the-match Alana King. “No doubt it doesn’t stop here. We anticipate returning to the next venue to face England and South Africa.”
