Alyssa Healy has delivered brilliant consecutive hundreds to lead her team into the semi-finals of the Women's Cricket World Cup, inspiring them to a dominant comprehensive win over Bangladesh.
Healy remained unbeaten on 113 runs, arriving just a few days after her equally stellar 142 that defeated the Indian team at the identical Vizag venue. This time, she shared an undefeated double-century opening partnership with her opening partner (84no) to dash to their target of 199 runs in just 24.5 deliveries.
“I thought I was a below par behind the stumps, and perhaps a bit as skipper as well tonight, but we’ll accept the win and progress,” she said.
Interestingly, the utmost professionalism of Thursday’s chase as the duo added 202 runs followed possibly the team's poorest display in the fielding department under Healy’s stewardship, with the captain criticizing herself in particular for dropping a couple of the six chances that were missed.
“I was a little bit disappointed with my glovework, and I had a little bit to make up for with the batting, and luckily got the job done,” Healy continued.
From the time statistics was first taken on fielding statistics in 2013, the six missed catches marked Australia’s worst fielding showing at a World Cup tournament.
“Maybe it’s just that phase of the tournament – we’ve been here a little while, and it’s an issue we’ll reflect on,” the captain said.
This allowed the opposition to manage 198 for 9 after they had chosen to bat, their highest total in an ODI against Australia, with Sobhana Mostary scoring the first fifty ever for the Bangladeshi team against the world champions.
But Alana King spellbinding unbroken ten-over spell, in which she took 2-18 with four maiden overs, was vital to making sure the team's target remained manageable.
The Captain Pleased with Win that Confirms Knockout Spot
Healy was pleased to learn that the victory, which places her undefeated side at the top of the group table on nine points after four victories and a abandoned match, guarantees them a berth in the semi-finals. “That's great news,” she said.
The 35-year-old captain raced to her century off just 73 deliveries, the quickest hundred of the World Cup, and ended with 20 boundaries off the 77 balls she confronted as she pulled away from her partner in the latter stages in the innings after they had gone practically shot for shot towards their fifties.
The Opener Impresses with First World Cup Half-Century
Left-hander Phoebe Litchfield struck 12 boundaries and one maximum, getting to her first tournament half-century off 46 balls shortly after Healy got there off 43. They went on to record the third-highest partnership by any Australian pair at a Women’s World Cup.
Earlier, during the subpar fielding effort, Healy dropped the easiest of chances off a teammate and also failed to grasp a tough lofted one off Annabel Sutherland. Frustratingly, she also did take a clean chance off Brown but failed to review when the official turned down their appeal.
The recalled Darcie Brown sent down the fastest balls at the World Cup so far but was nonetheless the team's costliest bowling option, going for 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spinners Excel as King Stars
In contrast, the spinners thrived, led by King, whose spell could have been even more productive if a fielder hadn’t dropped one in the slip cordon.
Fellow spinners Wareham (two for 22 off seven) and Gardner (2-48 off nine) both chipped in, while Sutherland consolidated her standing as the tournament’s leading wicket-taker with her 2-41, taking her tally to thirteen.
Rubya Haider’s 44 runs and another's unbeaten 66 runs off 80 balls took Bangladesh to their highest-ever score against the Australians, but the target was made to look easy meat by a team who had successfully pursued 330 against India four days earlier.
“It’s always nice when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a World Cup,” said star performer King. “Certainly it doesn’t stop here. We anticipate returning to Indore to take on the English team and the Proteas.”
