Alyssa Healy has delivered outstanding consecutive hundreds to guide her squad into the last four of the World Cup, driving them to a commanding 10-wicket win over Bangladesh.
The wicketkeeper-batter finished not out on 113 runs, arriving just four days after her equally stellar 142-run knock that defeated the Indian team at the same Vizag venue. This time, she shared an unbroken double-century first-wicket stand with Phoebe Litchfield (84no) to race to their target of 199 runs in just 24.5 overs.
“I felt I was a not at my best with the gloves, and perhaps a bit as captain as well today, but we’ll accept the win and progress,” she said.
Ironically, the utmost expertise of the day's run-chase as the pair added 202 runs came after possibly the team's weakest display in the field under Healy’s stewardship, with the captain scolding herself in especial for dropping a couple of the half-dozen chances that went down.
“I was a little bit disappointed with my glovework, and I needed to compensate with the batting, and luckily got the job done,” Healy continued.
Since statistics was first taken on fielding metrics in 2013, the six missed catches represented Australia’s worst fielding display at a Women’s World Cup.
“Perhaps it’s just that phase of the competition – we’ve been here a little while, and it’s something we’ll review,” the captain said.
It helped the opposition to manage 198 for 9 after they had chosen to bat, their best-ever total in an ODI against the Aussies, with a key batter scoring the maiden half-century ever for the Bangladeshi team against the world champions.
But Alana King spellbinding unbroken ten-over bowling performance, in which she took two wickets for 18 runs with four maiden overs, was key to ensuring Australia’s target wasn’t too challenging.
The Captain Pleased with Victory that Seals Knockout Spot
Healy was pleased to learn that the triumph, which puts her unbeaten team top of the standings on nine points after four wins and a wash-out, secures them a berth in the last-four. “That’s really cool,” she said.
The experienced captain raced to her century off just 73 deliveries, the quickest century of the tournament, and finished with 20 fours 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 boundary-for-boundary towards their half-centuries.
Litchfield Shines with First World Cup Fifty
The young batter Litchfield struck 12 boundaries and a six, reaching to her maiden tournament fifty off 46 deliveries shortly after Healy got there off 43. They went on to record the third-highest stand by any Aussie pair at a Women’s World Cup.
Earlier, during the subpar fielding effort, the captain spilled the simplest of edges off a teammate and also failed to grasp a difficult skied one off another bowler. Annoyingly, she also did take a clean catch off the same bowler but didn’t have it reviewed when the umpire rejected their shout.
The recalled Brown bowled the quickest balls at the World Cup so far but was nonetheless the Aussies’ most expensive bowler, going for 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spin Attack Excel as King Leads
Instead, the slow bowlers thrived, led by Alana King, whose spell could have been more successful if Beth Mooney hadn’t dropped one in the slip cordon.
Fellow spin bowlers Wareham (two for 22 off seven) and Ash Gardner (two for 48 off nine) both contributed, while Annabel Sutherland consolidated her position as the tournament’s top wicket-taker with her 2-41, bringing her tally to 13.
Rubya Haider’s 44 runs and another's unbeaten 66 runs off 80 deliveries took the team to their highest-ever score against the Aussies, but the total was rendered straightforward by a team who had successfully pursued 330 runs against India four days earlier.
“It's fantastic when you’ve got the ‘Q’ next to your name in a World Cup,” said star performer Alana King. “Certainly it won't end here. We look forward to going back to the next venue to take on the English team and South Africa.”
