Alyssa Healy has delivered superb consecutive centuries to lead her team into the last four of the Women's Cricket World Cup, driving them to a merciless 10-wicket victory over their opponents.
The wicketkeeper-batter finished unbeaten on 113 runs, coming just four days after her equally impressive 142-run knock that saw off the Indian team at the same Vizag venue. This time, she shared an unbroken 200-run first-wicket stand with Phoebe Litchfield (84 not out) to chase to their goal of 199 in just under 25 deliveries.
“I thought I was a little bit poor behind the stumps, and probably a bit as skipper as well today, but we’ll take the two points and progress,” she said.
Interestingly, the supreme professionalism of Thursday’s run-chase as the duo added 202 came after perhaps the team's poorest display in the fielding department under the captain's leadership, with the captain scolding herself in particular for dropping two of the six chances that went down.
“I was a little bit disappointed with my wicketkeeping, and I had a little bit to make up for with the batting, and luckily delivered,” she added.
Since data was first taken on fielding performance statistics in the year 2013, the half-dozen dropped catches marked Australia’s worst fielding showing at a Women’s World Cup.
“Maybe it’s just that time of the tournament – we’ve been here a while, and it’s something we’ll analyze,” the captain said.
This allowed Bangladesh to manage 9-198 after they had chosen to bat first, their best-ever score in an ODI against the Aussies, with Sobhana Mostary compiling the maiden fifty ever for the Bangladeshi team against the world champions.
But the spinner's spellbinding unbroken ten-over bowling performance, in which she claimed two wickets for 18 runs with four maiden overs, was crucial to ensuring Australia’s target remained manageable.
Healy Pleased with Win that Confirms Knockout Spot
The Australian skipper was delighted to learn that the triumph, which puts her undefeated team at the top of the group table on nine points after four victories and a abandoned match, guarantees them a place in the last-four. “That's great news,” she exclaimed.
The experienced captain raced to her century off just 73 balls, the fastest century of the tournament, and finished with 20 fours off the 77 deliveries she confronted as she pulled away from Litchfield later in the innings after they had gone practically boundary-for-boundary towards their half-centuries.
Litchfield Impresses with Maiden World Cup Fifty
The young batter Phoebe Litchfield struck 12 fours and one maximum, getting to her maiden World Cup half-century off 46 balls soon after Healy got there off 43. They went on to record the third-best partnership by any Aussie duo at a Women’s World Cup.
In the first innings, during the subpar fielding effort, the captain dropped the simplest of edges off Darcie Brown and also was unable to grasp a tough lofted one off another bowler. Annoyingly, she also take a clean catch off the same bowler but didn’t have it reviewed when the umpire turned down their shout.
The reinstated Darcie Brown bowled the quickest deliveries 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
In contrast, the slow bowlers thrived, spearheaded by Alana King, whose spell could have been even more productive if Beth Mooney hadn’t dropped one in the slips.
Other spin bowlers Wareham (two for 22 off seven) and Gardner (2-48 off nine) both chipped in, while Annabel Sutherland strengthened her standing as the tournament’s top wicket-taker with her two for 41, taking her total to 13.
Rubya Haider’s 44 and another's not out 66 off 80 deliveries took Bangladesh to their record score against the Aussies, but the target was made to look straightforward by a team who had successfully pursued 330 runs against India a few days earlier.
“It's fantastic when you’ve got the ‘Q’ next to your name in a global tournament,” remarked star performer King. “Certainly it won't end here. We look forward to going back to Indore to face England and the Proteas.”
