Alyssa Healy has executed outstanding back-to-back hundreds to guide her squad into the semi-finals of the Women's Cricket World Cup, inspiring them to a dominant 10-wicket trouncing over their opponents.
The wicketkeeper-batter finished not out on 113, coming just four days after her equally brilliant 142-run knock that saw off the Indian team at the same Visakhapatnam venue. This time, she shared an undefeated 200-run first-wicket stand with her opening partner (84no) to race to their goal of 199 in just 24.5 deliveries.
“I thought I was a little bit poor with the gloves, and perhaps a little bit as captain as well tonight, but we’ll take the win and move on,” Healy remarked.
Ironically, the utmost professionalism of the day's chase as the duo put on 202 runs followed possibly Australia’s weakest display in the field under Healy’s leadership, with the captain scolding herself in especial for spilling two 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 bat, and luckily succeeded,” she added.
From the time statistics was first taken on fielding performance metrics in the year 2013, the six missed opportunities represented the team's poorest fielding showing at a Women’s World Cup.
“Perhaps it’s just that phase of the tournament – we’ve been here a while, and it’s something we’ll review,” Healy commented.
It helped the opposition to eke out 198 for 9 after they had opted to bat, their best-ever score in an One-Day International against Australia, with a key batter scoring the maiden fifty ever for the Bangladeshi team against the reigning champions.
But Alana King spellbinding continuous 10-over spell, in which she took two wickets for 18 runs with four maidens, was key to ensuring Australia’s chase remained manageable.
The Captain Delighted with Victory that Confirms Semi-Final Place
The Australian skipper was thrilled to discover that the victory, which puts her unbeaten side top of the standings on nine points after four wins and a wash-out, guarantees them a berth in the last-four. “That's great news,” she exclaimed.
The 35-year-old captain sped to her century off just 73 balls, the quickest hundred of the tournament, and ended with 20 fours off the 77 balls she faced as she accelerated from Litchfield in the latter stages in the innings after they had gone practically shot for shot towards their half-centuries.
The Opener Impresses with First Tournament Fifty
The young batter Phoebe Litchfield struck 12 boundaries and one maximum, getting to her maiden tournament half-century off 46 balls soon after her partner got there off 43. They went on to record the third-highest stand by any Australian pair at a Women’s World Cup.
In the first innings, during the subpar fielding effort, the captain spilled the simplest of edges off a teammate and also failed to grasp a difficult skied one off another bowler. Frustratingly, she also did take a clear chance off Brown but failed to review when the umpire rejected their appeal.
The recalled Brown bowled the fastest balls at the World Cup so far but was nonetheless the team's costliest bowling option, conceding 0-52 off her nine overs.
Spin Attack Thrive as Alana King Stars
In contrast, the slow bowlers thrived, spearheaded by King, whose performance could have been even more productive if Beth Mooney hadn’t missed one in the slip cordon.
Fellow spin bowlers Wareham (two for 22 off seven overs) and Ash Gardner (2-48 off nine overs) both contributed, while Annabel Sutherland strengthened her position as the competition's leading wicket-taker with her two for 41, bringing her total to thirteen.
A batter's 44 and Mostary’s unbeaten 66 runs off 80 deliveries took Bangladesh to their record score against the Aussies, but the total was made to look straightforward by a side who had chased down 330 runs against India a few days earlier.
“It’s always nice when you’ve got the ‘Q’ next to your name in a World Cup,” remarked star performer Alana King. “Certainly it doesn’t stop here. We look forward to going back to Indore to face the English team and the Proteas.”
