Alyssa Healy has delivered brilliant back-to-back centuries to lead her squad into the semi-finals of the World Cup, inspiring them to a commanding comprehensive win over their opponents.
Healy finished unbeaten on 113, arriving just a few days after her similarly impressive 142 that saw off the Indian team at the identical Vizag stadium. This time, she shared an unbroken double-century opening partnership with her opening partner (84 not out) to dash to their goal of 199 in just under 25 overs.
“I thought I was a below par behind the stumps, and probably a little bit as captain as well tonight, but we’ll take the win and move on,” Healy remarked.
Ironically, the supreme expertise of Thursday’s run-chase as the pair added 202 runs came after possibly the team's poorest performance in the field under the captain's stewardship, with the captain scolding herself in especial for spilling a couple of the six catches that went down.
“I felt somewhat let down with my wicketkeeping, and I had a little bit to make up for with the batting, and luckily succeeded,” she added.
From the time statistics was initially recorded on fielding performance metrics in the year 2013, the six missed catches marked the team's worst fielding display at a World Cup tournament.
“Maybe it’s just that time of the competition – we’ve been here a while, and it’s something we’ll analyze,” the captain said.
This allowed Bangladesh to eke out 198 for 9 after they had chosen to bat, their best-ever score in an One-Day International against Australia, with a key batter compiling the first fifty ever for the Asian side against the world champions.
But Alana King mesmeric unbroken 10-over spell, in which she claimed two wickets for 18 runs with four maiden overs, was crucial to making sure Australia’s target remained manageable.
The Captain Pleased with Win that Seals Knockout Spot
The Australian skipper was thrilled to discover that the victory, which places her undefeated side at the top of the group table on nine points after four wins and a abandoned match, secures them a place in the semi-finals. “That’s really cool,” she exclaimed.
The experienced skipper sped to her century off just 73 deliveries, the fastest century of the World Cup, and ended with 20 fours off the 77 deliveries she faced as she pulled away from her partner later in the innings after they had gone practically shot for shot towards their fifties.
Litchfield Shines with Maiden World Cup Fifty
Left-hander Phoebe Litchfield struck 12 boundaries and a six, reaching 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 World Cup event.
In the first innings, during the subpar fielding effort, the captain spilled the simplest of edges off Darcie Brown and also was unable to hold on to a difficult lofted one off another bowler. Frustratingly, she also did take a clean catch off Brown but failed to review when the official turned down their shout.
The recalled Darcie Brown bowled the fastest deliveries at the tournament so far but was nonetheless the Aussies’ most expensive bowling option, conceding 0-52 off her nine overs.
Spinners Thrive as King Stars
Instead, the slow bowlers excelled, spearheaded by King, whose spell could have been more successful if Beth Mooney hadn’t missed one in the slips.
Fellow spin bowlers Wareham (two for 22 off seven overs) and Gardner (two for 48 off nine overs) both chipped in, while Annabel Sutherland consolidated her standing as the tournament’s leading wicket-taker with her two for 41, taking her total to 13.
Rubya Haider’s 44 and another's not out 66 off 80 balls took Bangladesh to their record score against the Australians, but the target was made to look easy meat by a side who had successfully pursued 330 against the Indian side a few days earlier.
“It's fantastic 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.”
