Alyssa Healy has delivered brilliant consecutive hundreds to guide her team into the semi-finals of the World Cup, driving them to a commanding comprehensive trouncing over their opponents.
Healy finished unbeaten on 113, coming just a few days after her similarly brilliant 142 that defeated hosts India at the same Visakhapatnam stadium. This time, she shared an undefeated double-century opening partnership with Phoebe Litchfield (84no) to chase to their target of 199 runs in just 24.5 deliveries.
“I thought I was a not at my best with the gloves, and perhaps a little bit as skipper as well today, but we’ll take the win and move on,” she said.
Ironically, the utmost expertise of Thursday’s chase as the duo added 202 followed possibly the team's shoddiest display in the field under Healy’s leadership, with the skipper scolding herself in particular for dropping two of the half-dozen 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 fortunately got the job done,” she added.
Since data was initially taken on fielding performance metrics in 2013, the half-dozen dropped opportunities marked the team's worst fielding showing at a Women’s World Cup.
“Perhaps it’s just that phase of the competition – we’ve been here a little while, and it’s an issue we’ll reflect on,” Healy said.
It helped the opposition to manage 9-198 after they had opted to bat, their best-ever total in an ODI against the Aussies, with a key batter scoring the maiden fifty ever for the Bangladeshi team against the reigning champions.
But Alana King spellbinding unbroken ten-over spell, in which she took 2-18 with four maidens, was key to ensuring Australia’s target wasn’t too challenging.
The Captain Pleased with Win that Confirms Semi-Final Place
Healy was pleased to discover that the triumph, which puts her unbeaten side top of the group table on nine points after four wins and a wash-out, guarantees them a berth in the last-four. “That’s really cool,” she said.
The experienced captain raced to her hundred off just 73 balls, the quickest hundred of the World Cup, and finished with 20 fours off the 77 deliveries she faced as she accelerated from Litchfield later in the knock after they had gone almost boundary-for-boundary towards their fifties.
Litchfield Impresses with Maiden World Cup Fifty
Left-hander Litchfield struck 12 boundaries and a six, getting to her maiden tournament fifty off 46 balls shortly after her partner got there off 43. They went on to achieve the third-highest stand by any Australian pair at a World Cup event.
Earlier, during the sluggish fielding display, the captain dropped the easiest of edges off Darcie Brown and also was unable to grasp a tough lofted one off another bowler. Annoyingly, she also take a clear chance off Brown but didn’t have it reviewed when the official rejected their shout.
The recalled Darcie Brown sent down 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 Leads
Instead, the spinners excelled, spearheaded by Alana King, whose spell could have been more successful if Beth Mooney hadn’t dropped one in the slips.
Other spin bowlers Georgia 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 competition's top wicket-taker with her 2-41, bringing her tally to thirteen.
Rubya Haider’s 44 runs and another's unbeaten 66 off 80 balls took Bangladesh to their highest-ever score against the Aussies, but the total was rendered straightforward by a team who had successfully pursued 330 against the Indian side a few days before.
“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 doesn’t stop here. We look forward to going back to the next venue to take on England and South Africa.”
