Alyssa Healy has delivered superb back-to-back centuries to lead her team into the semi-finals of the World Cup, inspiring them to a dominant comprehensive victory over Bangladesh.
The wicketkeeper-batter finished unbeaten on 113 runs, arriving just a few days after her equally impressive 142-run knock that saw off the Indian team at the identical Visakhapatnam venue. This time, she combined in an unbroken 200-run opening partnership with her opening partner (84 not out) to race to their goal of 199 in just 24.5 deliveries.
“I thought I was a little bit poor behind the stumps, and probably a bit as captain as well tonight, but we’ll accept the win and progress,” Healy remarked.
Ironically, the supreme professionalism of Thursday’s chase as the duo put on 202 followed perhaps Australia’s poorest performance in the field under Healy’s stewardship, with the captain scolding herself in particular for dropping two of the half-dozen chances that were missed.
“I felt somewhat let down with my wicketkeeping, and I had a little bit to make up for with the bat, and fortunately delivered,” Healy continued.
From the time data was initially taken on fielding metrics in the year 2013, the six dropped opportunities represented the team's worst fielding display at a Women’s World Cup.
“Perhaps it’s just that time of the competition – we’ve been here a while, and it’s an issue we’ll reflect on,” the captain commented.
This allowed Bangladesh to eke out 198 for 9 after they had chosen to bat, their highest total in an One-Day International against the Aussies, with Sobhana Mostary scoring the first fifty ever for the Bangladeshi team against the reigning champions.
But the spinner's mesmeric continuous 10-over bowling performance, in which she took two wickets for 18 runs with four maiden overs, was vital to ensuring Australia’s chase wasn’t too challenging.
Healy Pleased with Victory that Confirms Knockout Place
Healy was thrilled to discover that the triumph, which puts her unbeaten team top of the standings on nine points after four wins and a abandoned match, secures them a berth in the last-four. “That’s really cool,” she exclaimed.
The 35-year-old captain sped to her century off just 73 deliveries, the fastest century of the tournament, and ended with 20 fours off the 77 deliveries she faced as she pulled away from Litchfield in the latter stages in the knock after they had gone almost shot for shot towards their half-centuries.
Litchfield Shines with Maiden World Cup Half-Century
The young batter Phoebe Litchfield struck 12 fours and one maximum, reaching to her first World Cup fifty off 46 deliveries soon after her partner reached hers off 43. They went on to achieve the third-highest partnership by any Aussie duo at a Women’s World Cup.
Earlier, during the sluggish fielding effort, the captain dropped the easiest of edges off a teammate and also failed to grasp a tough skied one off Annabel Sutherland. Annoyingly, she also take a clear catch off Brown but didn’t have it reviewed when the official turned down their appeal.
The recalled Brown bowled the fastest deliveries at the tournament so far but was nonetheless the team's costliest bowling option, conceding 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spin Attack Thrive as King Leads
Instead, the spinners thrived, spearheaded by Alana King, whose performance could have been even more productive if Beth Mooney hadn’t missed one in the slips.
Other spin bowlers Georgia Wareham (two for 22 off seven) and Gardner (2-48 off nine overs) both chipped in, while Sutherland strengthened her position as the competition's leading wicket-taker with her two for 41, bringing her tally to thirteen.
A batter's 44 runs and Mostary’s not out 66 off 80 balls took the team to their record total against the Aussies, but the target was made to look easy meat by a team who had chased down 330 runs against India a few days earlier.
“It's great when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a global tournament,” remarked player-of-the-match Alana King. “Certainly it won't end here. We anticipate going back to Indore to face the English team and South Africa.”
