Alyssa Healy has executed outstanding consecutive hundreds to lead her team into the last four of the Women's Cricket World Cup, motivating them to a commanding 10-wicket trouncing over Bangladesh.
The wicketkeeper-batter remained not out on 113 runs, coming just a few days after her similarly stellar 142 that saw off the Indian team at the same Vizag venue. This time, she shared an unbroken double-century first-wicket stand with Phoebe Litchfield (84no) to dash to their target of 199 in just under 25 deliveries.
“I thought I was a below par with the gloves, and probably a little bit as captain as well tonight, but we’ll take the two points and move on,” Healy remarked.
Interestingly, the supreme expertise of the day's chase as the pair added 202 followed possibly the team's poorest display in the field under the captain's stewardship, with the captain criticizing herself in particular for spilling a couple of the half-dozen catches that went down.
“I was a little bit disappointed with my glovework, and I needed to compensate with the bat, and fortunately got the job done,” Healy continued.
From the time statistics was initially recorded on fielding performance metrics in the year 2013, the six dropped catches represented the team's poorest fielding display 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,” the captain commented.
This allowed the opposition to manage 198 for 9 after they had chosen to bat first, their best-ever total in an One-Day International against the Aussies, with Sobhana Mostary compiling the first half-century ever for the Asian side against the world champions.
But the spinner's spellbinding continuous 10-over spell, in which she took two wickets for 18 runs with four maiden overs, was vital to making sure Australia’s chase wasn’t too challenging.
Healy Pleased with Victory that Seals Knockout Place
The Australian skipper was thrilled to learn that the triumph, which places her undefeated side at the top of the group table on nine points after four wins and a wash-out, secures them a berth in the semi-finals. “That's fantastic,” she said.
The experienced captain raced to her hundred off just 73 balls, the quickest century of the World Cup, and ended with 20 boundaries off the 77 deliveries she confronted as she accelerated from Litchfield in the latter stages in the innings after they had gone practically boundary-for-boundary towards their fifties.
Litchfield Shines with First Tournament Fifty
Left-hander Phoebe Litchfield struck 12 fours and one maximum, getting to her first tournament fifty off 46 balls shortly after Healy got there off 43. They went on to achieve the third-highest stand by any Australian pair at a World Cup event.
Earlier, during the sluggish fielding display, Healy spilled the easiest of chances off Darcie Brown and also failed to hold on to a difficult lofted one off another bowler. Frustratingly, she also take a clear chance off the same bowler but failed to review when the umpire rejected their shout.
The recalled Brown sent down the fastest deliveries at the tournament so far but was still the Aussies’ costliest bowler, conceding 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spinners Thrive as Alana King Leads
In contrast, the slow bowlers thrived, led by Alana King, whose spell could have been even more productive if a fielder hadn’t missed one in the slips.
Fellow spin bowlers Georgia Wareham (two for 22 off seven overs) and Gardner (two for 48 off nine) both chipped in, while Sutherland strengthened her position as the tournament’s top wicket-taker with her 2-41, bringing her total to 13.
A batter's 44 and another's not out 66 runs off 80 deliveries took Bangladesh to their highest-ever score against the Australians, but the target was made to look easy meat by a team who had chased down 330 runs against the Indian side a few days earlier.
“It’s always nice when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a global tournament,” said player-of-the-match King. “Certainly it won't end here. We look forward to going back to the next venue to face the English team and the Proteas.”
