Alyssa Healy has produced brilliant back-to-back centuries to guide her team into the semi-finals of the World Cup, inspiring them to a dominant comprehensive victory over Bangladesh.
The wicketkeeper-batter finished not out on 113, arriving just a few days after her similarly stellar 142-run knock that defeated hosts India at the identical Vizag stadium. This time, she shared an undefeated double-century opening partnership with her opening partner (84 not out) to chase to their goal of 199 runs in just under 25 deliveries.
“I thought I was a not at my best with the gloves, and perhaps a bit as captain as well tonight, but we’ll accept the two points and progress,” she said.
Interestingly, the utmost professionalism of the day's run-chase as the duo put on 202 came after possibly Australia’s poorest performance in the fielding department under Healy’s leadership, with the captain criticizing herself in particular for dropping a couple of the half-dozen chances that went down.
“I was a little bit disappointed with my glovework, and I had a little bit to make up for with the batting, and fortunately got the job done,” she added.
Since statistics was initially recorded on fielding metrics in 2013, the six dropped opportunities represented the team's worst fielding display at a World Cup tournament.
“Maybe it’s just that time of the tournament – we’ve been here a little while, and it’s an issue we’ll review,” Healy commented.
This allowed Bangladesh to manage 198 for 9 after they had chosen to bat first, their best-ever score in an ODI 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 spell, in which she claimed 2-18 with four maiden overs, was vital to ensuring the team's target remained manageable.
The Captain Pleased with Victory that Seals Knockout Place
Healy was pleased to learn that the triumph, which places her unbeaten side at the top of the group table on nine points after four victories and a abandoned match, secures them a place in the last-four. “That's great news,” she said.
The experienced captain raced to her century off just 73 balls, the fastest hundred of the tournament, and ended with 20 fours off the 77 deliveries she faced as she pulled away from her partner in the latter stages in the innings after they had gone practically boundary-for-boundary towards their fifties.
The Opener Shines with First Tournament Fifty
Left-hander Litchfield hit 12 boundaries and a six, reaching to her maiden tournament fifty off 46 deliveries shortly after Healy got there off 43 balls. They went on to achieve the third-best partnership by any Aussie duo at a Women’s World Cup.
Earlier, during the subpar fielding display, Healy dropped the simplest of edges off a teammate and also failed to hold on to a difficult skied one off another bowler. Annoyingly, she also did take a clean catch off the same bowler but didn’t have it reviewed when the umpire rejected their appeal.
The reinstated Brown bowled the fastest balls at the tournament so far but was nonetheless the Aussies’ most expensive bowler, conceding 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spin Attack Thrive as King Stars
Instead, the slow bowlers thrived, led by Alana King, whose spell could have been even more productive if a fielder hadn’t dropped one in the slips.
Fellow spin bowlers Georgia Wareham (2-22 off seven) and Gardner (two for 48 off nine overs) both contributed, while Sutherland consolidated her position as the tournament’s top wicket-taker with her 2-41, taking her tally to thirteen.
Rubya Haider’s 44 runs and another's unbeaten 66 runs off 80 deliveries took the team to their highest-ever score against the Australians, but the total was made to look straightforward by a side who had chased down 330 against the Indian side a few days earlier.
“It's great when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a global tournament,” said star performer Alana King. “Certainly it won't end here. We anticipate returning to the next venue to take on England and the Proteas.”
