Alyssa Healy has produced brilliant consecutive hundreds to guide her squad into the last four of the Women's Cricket World Cup, motivating them to a commanding comprehensive win over their opponents.
The wicketkeeper-batter finished unbeaten on 113 runs, arriving just a few days after her equally impressive 142-run knock that saw off hosts India at the identical Visakhapatnam venue. This time, she combined in an unbroken 200-run opening partnership with her opening partner (84no) to chase to their target of 199 runs in just 24.5 overs.
“I thought I was a below par behind the stumps, and probably a bit as skipper as well today, but we’ll accept the win and progress,” she said.
Ironically, the utmost professionalism of Thursday’s chase as the duo added 202 runs came after perhaps the team's shoddiest display in the field under the captain's stewardship, with the captain scolding herself in especial for dropping a couple of the half-dozen catches that went down.
“I felt somewhat let down with my glovework, and I had a little bit to make up for with the bat, and luckily succeeded,” she added.
Since data was first taken on fielding metrics in the year 2013, the six missed opportunities represented the team's worst fielding display at a Women’s World Cup.
“Perhaps it’s just that time of the competition – we’ve been here a while, and it’s an issue we’ll reflect on,” Healy said.
This allowed Bangladesh to manage 9-198 after they had chosen to bat first, their best-ever total in an One-Day International against the Aussies, with a key batter compiling the maiden half-century ever for the Asian side against the reigning champions.
But the spinner's mesmeric unbroken 10-over bowling performance, in which she claimed two wickets for 18 runs with four maiden overs, was key to making sure the team's chase wasn’t too challenging.
The Captain Pleased with Victory that Confirms Knockout Place
Healy was delighted to learn that the triumph, which puts her unbeaten side top of the standings on nine points after four victories and a abandoned match, guarantees them a place in the semi-finals. “That's great news,” she said.
The experienced captain sped to her hundred off just 73 balls, the quickest century of the tournament, and finished with 20 fours off the 77 deliveries she faced as she pulled away from Litchfield later in the innings after they had gone almost boundary-for-boundary towards their half-centuries.
Litchfield Shines with First World Cup Half-Century
Left-hander Phoebe Litchfield struck 12 fours and a six, reaching to her maiden tournament fifty off 46 deliveries shortly after her partner got there off 43 balls. They went on to achieve the third-best partnership by any Aussie duo at a World Cup event.
In the first innings, during the sluggish fielding effort, the captain spilled the easiest 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 clear chance off the same bowler but didn’t have it reviewed when the umpire turned down their appeal.
The reinstated Darcie Brown bowled the fastest balls at the World Cup so far but was nonetheless the team's most expensive bowling option, conceding 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spinners Excel as Alana King Leads
Instead, the slow bowlers excelled, spearheaded by Alana King, whose spell could have been even more productive if a fielder hadn’t missed one in the slips.
Fellow spinners Wareham (2-22 off seven) and Gardner (2-48 off nine) both chipped in, while Annabel Sutherland consolidated her position as the competition's top wicket-taker with her two for 41, taking her total to 13.
A batter's 44 and Mostary’s not out 66 runs off 80 balls took Bangladesh to their highest-ever total against the Aussies, but the total was made to look straightforward by a team who had chased down 330 runs against India four days earlier.
“It's great when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a World Cup,” remarked player-of-the-match King. “Certainly it doesn’t stop here. We anticipate returning to Indore to take on the English team and South Africa.”
