Alyssa Healy has executed outstanding back-to-back hundreds to steer her team into the last four of the Women's Cricket World Cup, motivating them to a commanding 10-wicket trouncing over their opponents.
The wicketkeeper-batter finished not out on 113, coming just a few days after her similarly stellar 142-run knock that defeated the Indian team at the identical Vizag stadium. This time, she shared an undefeated 200-run opening partnership with Phoebe Litchfield (84 not out) to chase to their goal of 199 runs in just under 25 overs.
“I felt I was a below par with the gloves, and perhaps a little bit as skipper as well today, but we’ll take the win and progress,” Healy remarked.
Ironically, the supreme professionalism of the day's chase as the duo put on 202 runs followed possibly Australia’s weakest display in the field under the captain's leadership, with the skipper criticizing herself in particular for dropping a couple of the six catches that were missed.
“I felt somewhat let down with my wicketkeeping, and I needed to compensate with the batting, and luckily succeeded,” she added.
From the time statistics was initially recorded on fielding statistics in 2013, the six dropped opportunities marked the team's poorest fielding display at a World Cup tournament.
“Maybe it’s just that phase of the competition – we’ve been here a while, and it’s something we’ll reflect on,” Healy said.
This allowed Bangladesh to eke out 9-198 after they had chosen to bat first, their best-ever score in an One-Day International against Australia, with a key batter scoring the maiden fifty ever for the Asian side against the reigning champions.
But the spinner's mesmeric unbroken ten-over spell, in which she took two wickets for 18 runs with four maiden overs, was key to making sure Australia’s chase wasn’t too challenging.
Healy Pleased with Win that Seals Knockout Place
The Australian skipper was pleased to discover that the triumph, which puts her undefeated side top of the standings on nine points after four victories and a abandoned match, guarantees them a berth in the last-four. “That’s really cool,” she said.
The 35-year-old captain raced to her hundred off just 73 deliveries, the quickest hundred of the tournament, and ended with 20 fours off the 77 deliveries she confronted as she accelerated from her partner in the latter stages in the innings after they had gone practically shot for shot towards their half-centuries.
Litchfield Impresses with First World Cup Fifty
The young batter Litchfield struck 12 boundaries and one maximum, reaching to her first World Cup half-century off 46 deliveries soon after Healy reached hers off 43. They went on to record the third-highest stand by any Aussie duo at a Women’s World Cup.
In the first innings, during the sluggish fielding effort, the captain spilled the simplest of edges off Darcie Brown and also was unable to grasp a difficult skied one off Annabel Sutherland. Annoyingly, she also did take a clean chance off the same bowler but didn’t have it reviewed when the official turned down their appeal.
The reinstated Darcie Brown bowled the fastest balls at the tournament so far but was nonetheless the Aussies’ most expensive bowler, conceding 0-52 off her nine overs.
Spinners Excel as Alana King Stars
In contrast, the spinners excelled, led by Alana King, whose performance could have been more successful if a fielder hadn’t missed one in the slips.
Other spin bowlers Wareham (two for 22 off seven) and Ash Gardner (two for 48 off nine overs) both chipped in, while Annabel Sutherland consolidated her standing as the tournament’s top wicket-taker with her 2-41, taking her total to 13.
Rubya Haider’s 44 and Mostary’s not out 66 off 80 balls took Bangladesh to their highest-ever total against the Australians, but the total was rendered easy meat by a team who had successfully pursued 330 runs against India a few days earlier.
“It’s always nice when you’ve got the ‘Q’ next to your name in a global tournament,” remarked player-of-the-match King. “Certainly it doesn’t stop here. We anticipate going back to the next venue to take on England and South Africa.”
