Alyssa Healy has produced superb back-to-back centuries to guide her squad into the semi-finals of the Women's Cricket World Cup, driving them to a dominant 10-wicket win over Bangladesh.
The wicketkeeper-batter remained not out on 113 runs, coming just four days after her equally brilliant 142-run knock that saw off the Indian team at the same Visakhapatnam stadium. This time, she combined in an unbroken 200-run first-wicket stand with her opening partner (84 not out) to race to their goal of 199 in just under 25 deliveries.
“I felt I was a below par behind the stumps, and perhaps a bit as skipper as well today, but we’ll take the two points and progress,” Healy remarked.
Interestingly, the utmost professionalism of Thursday’s run-chase as the duo put on 202 runs followed perhaps Australia’s shoddiest display in the field under the captain's leadership, with the skipper criticizing herself in especial for spilling a couple of the six catches that were missed.
“I was a little bit disappointed with my wicketkeeping, and I needed to compensate with the bat, and fortunately delivered,” she added.
From the time data was first taken on fielding performance statistics in 2013, the six missed catches represented Australia’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 review,” Healy said.
This allowed the opposition to manage 9-198 after they had opted to bat first, their highest score in an ODI against Australia, with Sobhana Mostary scoring the maiden fifty ever for the Asian side against the world champions.
But the spinner's mesmeric continuous 10-over bowling performance, in which she took two wickets for 18 runs with four maiden overs, was key to making sure Australia’s target wasn’t too challenging.
The Captain Delighted with Win that Confirms Knockout Spot
The Australian skipper 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 wash-out, guarantees them a place in the semi-finals. “That's fantastic,” she said.
The 35-year-old skipper raced to her hundred off just 73 deliveries, the quickest century of the World Cup, and finished with 20 boundaries off the 77 deliveries she faced as she pulled away from Litchfield later in the innings after they had gone almost shot for shot towards their half-centuries.
The Opener Shines with First Tournament Half-Century
The young batter Litchfield struck 12 boundaries and a six, getting to her first tournament fifty off 46 balls shortly after her partner got there off 43 balls. They went on to record the third-highest stand by any Aussie pair at a World Cup event.
In the first innings, during the subpar fielding effort, the captain dropped the simplest of edges off a teammate and also was unable to hold on to a difficult skied one off Annabel Sutherland. Annoyingly, she also did take a clean catch off Brown but didn’t have it reviewed when the official rejected their appeal.
The recalled Brown sent down the fastest balls at the World Cup so far but was still the Aussies’ costliest bowling option, conceding 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spin Attack Thrive as King Leads
Instead, the spinners excelled, spearheaded by King, whose spell could have been more successful if Beth Mooney hadn’t missed one in the slip cordon.
Fellow spin bowlers Georgia Wareham (two for 22 off seven overs) and Ash Gardner (two for 48 off nine) both contributed, while Annabel Sutherland consolidated her standing as the competition's top wicket-taker with her 2-41, taking her total to thirteen.
A batter's 44 runs and another's not out 66 runs off 80 balls took Bangladesh to their record total against the Australians, but the total was made to look straightforward by a team who had chased down 330 against the Indian side a few days earlier.
“It's fantastic when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a World Cup,” said player-of-the-match King. “No doubt it won't end here. We look forward to returning to the next venue to face the English team and South Africa.”
