Alyssa Healy has delivered outstanding consecutive hundreds to lead her squad into the semi-finals of the Women's Cricket World Cup, motivating them to a merciless 10-wicket trouncing over Bangladesh.
The wicketkeeper-batter finished not out on 113 runs, arriving just four days after her similarly brilliant 142 that defeated the Indian team at the identical Visakhapatnam venue. This time, she combined in an unbroken 200-run first-wicket stand with Phoebe Litchfield (84 not out) to dash to their goal of 199 in just 24.5 deliveries.
“I thought I was a below par behind the stumps, and probably a bit as captain as well tonight, but we’ll accept the two points and progress,” she said.
Interestingly, the supreme professionalism of the day's run-chase as the duo put on 202 runs followed possibly Australia’s weakest performance in the field under Healy’s stewardship, with the skipper criticizing herself in particular for spilling two of the six catches that went down.
“I felt somewhat let down with my wicketkeeping, and I needed to compensate with the batting, and fortunately succeeded,” Healy continued.
Since statistics was initially recorded on fielding performance statistics in 2013, the half-dozen missed catches marked the team's poorest fielding showing at a World Cup tournament.
“Perhaps it’s just that phase of the tournament – we’ve been here a while, and it’s something we’ll analyze,” Healy said.
It helped Bangladesh to eke out 9-198 after they had chosen to bat first, their best-ever total in an One-Day International against Australia, with Sobhana Mostary scoring the maiden half-century ever for the Bangladeshi team against the reigning champions.
But the spinner's mesmeric unbroken ten-over bowling performance, in which she took 2-18 with four maiden overs, was key to ensuring Australia’s chase wasn’t too challenging.
The Captain Pleased with Win that Seals Semi-Final Spot
The Australian skipper was delighted to discover that the triumph, which puts her unbeaten side top of the standings on nine points after four victories and a abandoned match, secures them a berth in the semi-finals. “That's great news,” she exclaimed.
The 35-year-old captain sped to her century off just 73 deliveries, the quickest century of the tournament, and finished with 20 boundaries off the 77 deliveries she confronted as she pulled away from Litchfield later in the knock after they had gone almost boundary-for-boundary towards their fifties.
The Opener Impresses with First World Cup Fifty
Left-hander Litchfield struck 12 fours and a six, reaching to her first World Cup half-century off 46 deliveries soon after her partner got there off 43 balls. They went on to achieve the third-best stand by any Australian duo at a Women’s World Cup.
Earlier, during the sluggish fielding display, the captain spilled the simplest of edges off Darcie Brown and also failed to hold on to a tough skied one off Annabel Sutherland. Frustratingly, she also take a clear catch off Brown but failed to review when the umpire rejected their shout.
The reinstated Brown sent down the fastest balls at the World Cup so far but was nonetheless the team's costliest bowling option, conceding 0-52 off her nine overs.
Spinners Excel as King Stars
In contrast, the slow bowlers excelled, led by King, whose spell could have been even more productive if Beth Mooney hadn’t dropped one in the slips.
Other spinners Georgia Wareham (2-22 off seven) and Ash Gardner (2-48 off nine) both contributed, while Annabel Sutherland consolidated her position as the competition's leading wicket-taker with her 2-41, taking her tally to 13.
Rubya Haider’s 44 runs and another's not out 66 runs off 80 deliveries took Bangladesh to their record total against the Aussies, but the total was made to look straightforward by a side who had successfully pursued 330 against the Indian side four days before.
“It's fantastic when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a global tournament,” said star performer King. “Certainly it won't end here. We anticipate going back to Indore to face the English team and South Africa.”
