Alyssa Healy has executed outstanding consecutive centuries to guide her team into the semi-finals of the World Cup, inspiring them to a commanding 10-wicket win over Bangladesh.
Healy finished not out on 113 runs, arriving just four days after her equally brilliant 142-run knock that defeated hosts India at the same Vizag venue. This time, she shared an unbroken 200-run first-wicket stand with Phoebe Litchfield (84 not out) to dash to their goal of 199 runs in just 24.5 deliveries.
“I felt I was a little bit poor with the gloves, and perhaps a bit as skipper as well today, but we’ll accept the two points and move on,” she said.
Ironically, the supreme professionalism of the day's run-chase as the pair added 202 runs followed perhaps the team's poorest performance in the fielding department under Healy’s stewardship, with the skipper criticizing herself in especial for spilling two of the six chances that were missed.
“I felt somewhat let down with my wicketkeeping, and I needed to compensate with the bat, and luckily delivered,” she added.
Since data was initially recorded on fielding statistics in 2013, the six dropped opportunities marked the team's worst fielding display at a Women’s World Cup.
“Perhaps it’s just that phase of the competition – we’ve been here a while, and it’s something we’ll analyze,” Healy said.
This allowed the opposition to eke out 198 for 9 after they had opted to bat, their highest total in an ODI against the Aussies, with Sobhana Mostary compiling the maiden half-century ever for the Asian side against the world champions.
But Alana King spellbinding unbroken 10-over spell, in which she took 2-18 with four maidens, was key to making sure Australia’s chase wasn’t too challenging.
The Captain Pleased with Win that Seals Knockout Place
Healy was delighted to discover that the victory, which puts her undefeated side at the top of the group table on nine points after four wins and a wash-out, guarantees them a berth in the last-four. “That’s really cool,” she said.
The experienced skipper sped to her hundred off just 73 balls, the fastest century of the World Cup, and finished with 20 boundaries off the 77 balls she faced as she accelerated from her partner later in the innings after they had gone almost boundary-for-boundary towards their fifties.
Litchfield Shines with First World Cup Fifty
The young batter Litchfield struck 12 boundaries and one maximum, reaching to her maiden World Cup fifty off 46 balls shortly after her partner reached hers off 43. They went on to achieve the third-best stand by any Aussie duo at a World Cup event.
In the first innings, during the sluggish fielding effort, Healy spilled the easiest of chances off Darcie Brown and also was unable to grasp a difficult lofted one off another bowler. Frustratingly, she also did take a clear chance off Brown but didn’t have it reviewed when the official rejected their shout.
The reinstated Darcie Brown sent down the quickest deliveries at the tournament so far but was nonetheless the Aussies’ most expensive bowling option, going for 0-52 off her nine overs.
Spinners Excel as Alana King Leads
Instead, the spinners thrived, spearheaded by Alana King, whose spell could have been more successful if a fielder hadn’t missed one in the slips.
Other spin bowlers Wareham (2-22 off seven) and Ash Gardner (two for 48 off nine) both chipped in, while Sutherland strengthened her standing as the tournament’s leading wicket-taker with her 2-41, taking her total to thirteen.
Rubya Haider’s 44 and Mostary’s not out 66 runs off 80 balls took Bangladesh to their record score against the Aussies, but the target was rendered easy meat by a team who had successfully pursued 330 runs against the Indian side a few days earlier.
“It's fantastic when you’ve got the ‘Q’ next to your name in a global tournament,” said player-of-the-match Alana King. “Certainly it doesn’t stop here. We look forward to going back to the next venue to face the English team and South Africa.”
