Alyssa Healy has delivered outstanding consecutive centuries to guide her team into the semi-finals of the World Cup, motivating them to a commanding 10-wicket trouncing over Bangladesh.
The wicketkeeper-batter finished unbeaten on 113 runs, coming just a few days after her similarly brilliant 142-run knock that defeated the Indian team at the same Vizag stadium. This time, she combined in an unbroken 200-run first-wicket stand with Phoebe Litchfield (84no) to chase to their target of 199 runs in just under 25 overs.
“I thought I was a below par behind the stumps, and probably a bit as skipper as well today, but we’ll accept the win and progress,” Healy remarked.
Interestingly, the supreme professionalism of the day's run-chase as the pair added 202 runs came after perhaps Australia’s shoddiest performance in the fielding department under Healy’s leadership, with the skipper scolding herself in especial for dropping two of the six catches that were missed.
“I was a little bit disappointed with my glovework, and I had a little bit to make up for with the bat, and luckily got the job done,” Healy continued.
From the time data was initially taken on fielding performance metrics in 2013, the half-dozen dropped opportunities represented Australia’s poorest fielding display at a World Cup tournament.
“Perhaps it’s just that phase of the tournament – we’ve been here a little while, and it’s an issue we’ll review,” the captain said.
It helped Bangladesh to eke out 198 for 9 after they had chosen to bat first, their best-ever total in an One-Day International against Australia, with a key batter compiling the maiden fifty ever for the Bangladeshi team against the world champions.
But the spinner's mesmeric continuous ten-over bowling performance, in which she claimed 2-18 with four maiden overs, was crucial to ensuring the team's chase wasn’t too challenging.
Healy Delighted with Victory that Confirms Knockout Spot
Healy was delighted to learn that the triumph, which puts her undefeated team at the top of the standings on nine points after four wins and a wash-out, secures them a place in the last-four. “That’s really cool,” she said.
The 35-year-old captain sped to her century off just 73 deliveries, the fastest hundred of the tournament, and finished with 20 boundaries off the 77 deliveries she confronted as she accelerated from her partner later in the innings after they had gone practically boundary-for-boundary towards their fifties.
The Opener Shines with First Tournament Half-Century
Left-hander Litchfield struck 12 fours and a six, reaching to her maiden World Cup half-century off 46 deliveries soon after her partner reached hers off 43 balls. They went on to achieve the third-best stand by any Aussie pair at a World Cup event.
In the first innings, during the sluggish fielding effort, the captain dropped the simplest of chances off a teammate and also was unable to hold on to a tough skied one off Annabel Sutherland. Annoyingly, she also did take a clean catch off Brown but didn’t have it reviewed when the umpire turned down their appeal.
The reinstated Brown sent down the fastest balls at the World Cup so far but was nonetheless the team's costliest bowling option, going for 0-52 off her nine overs.
Spin Attack Excel as King Stars
Instead, the spinners thrived, led by King, whose performance could have been even more productive if a fielder hadn’t dropped one in the slips.
Fellow spinners Wareham (2-22 off seven overs) and Ash Gardner (2-48 off nine) both chipped in, while Annabel Sutherland consolidated her standing as the tournament’s leading wicket-taker with her 2-41, taking her tally to 13.
A batter's 44 runs and Mostary’s unbeaten 66 runs off 80 balls took the team to their highest-ever score against the Aussies, but the total was rendered easy meat by a side who had successfully pursued 330 runs against India 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 won't end here. We look forward to returning to the next venue to face England and the Proteas.”
