Alyssa Healy has delivered brilliant back-to-back centuries to guide her team into the last four of the Women's Cricket World Cup, driving them to a dominant 10-wicket win over their opponents.
Healy remained unbeaten on 113 runs, coming just a few days after her similarly stellar 142 that defeated hosts India at the identical Visakhapatnam venue. This time, she combined in an undefeated 200-run opening partnership with her opening partner (84 not out) to race to their goal of 199 in just under 25 deliveries.
“I felt I was a not at my best with the gloves, and probably a little bit as skipper as well today, but we’ll take the win and move on,” Healy remarked.
Ironically, the utmost expertise of the day's chase as the pair added 202 runs came after possibly the team's shoddiest display in the fielding department under Healy’s leadership, with the skipper scolding herself in particular for dropping a couple of the half-dozen catches that were missed.
“I was a little bit disappointed with my wicketkeeping, and I had a little bit to make up for with the batting, and fortunately succeeded,” she added.
From the time statistics was first recorded on fielding performance statistics in the year 2013, the six dropped opportunities marked Australia’s worst fielding display at a World Cup tournament.
“Maybe it’s just that time of the competition – we’ve been here a little while, and it’s something we’ll analyze,” Healy said.
This allowed Bangladesh to eke out 9-198 after they had chosen to bat first, their highest score in an One-Day International against the Aussies, with Sobhana Mostary scoring the maiden half-century ever for the Bangladeshi team against the reigning champions.
But the spinner's spellbinding continuous 10-over spell, in which she took two wickets for 18 runs with four maidens, was crucial to making sure the team's target remained manageable.
The Captain Delighted with Win that Confirms Knockout Spot
Healy was thrilled to discover that the victory, which puts her unbeaten team at the top of the group table on nine points after four wins and a abandoned match, guarantees them a berth in the last-four. “That's fantastic,” she exclaimed.
The experienced skipper sped to her century off just 73 deliveries, the fastest hundred of the tournament, and finished with 20 fours off the 77 deliveries she confronted as she accelerated from her partner later in the knock after they had gone practically shot for shot towards their fifties.
The Opener Impresses with First Tournament Half-Century
The young batter Phoebe Litchfield struck 12 boundaries and one maximum, getting to her maiden tournament half-century off 46 deliveries shortly after Healy reached hers off 43 balls. They went on to achieve the third-best partnership by any Aussie duo at a World Cup event.
In the first innings, during the subpar fielding display, Healy dropped the simplest of chances off Darcie Brown and also failed to grasp a difficult lofted one off Annabel Sutherland. Annoyingly, she also take a clean catch off the same bowler but failed to review when the umpire rejected their appeal.
The recalled Darcie Brown sent down the fastest deliveries at the tournament so far but was still the team's most expensive bowler, going for 0-52 off her nine overs.
Spin Attack Thrive as King Leads
In contrast, the slow bowlers thrived, led by Alana King, whose performance could have been more successful if Beth Mooney hadn’t missed one in the slips.
Other spinners Georgia Wareham (2-22 off seven overs) and Gardner (two for 48 off nine) both chipped in, while Annabel Sutherland strengthened her position as the tournament’s top wicket-taker with her two for 41, bringing her tally to 13.
Rubya Haider’s 44 runs and another's unbeaten 66 off 80 balls took Bangladesh to their highest-ever score against the Australians, but the total was made to look easy meat by a side who had chased down 330 runs against India four days before.
“It's great when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a World Cup,” said player-of-the-match Alana King. “Certainly it won't end here. We anticipate returning to the next venue to face England and the Proteas.”
