Alyssa Healy has executed superb consecutive hundreds to steer her team into the last four of the World Cup, inspiring them to a dominant 10-wicket victory over Bangladesh.
The wicketkeeper-batter remained unbeaten on 113 runs, coming just four days after her equally stellar 142 that saw off the Indian team at the identical Vizag venue. This time, she shared an unbroken 200-run first-wicket stand with her opening partner (84no) to race to their goal of 199 runs in just under 25 overs.
“I felt I was a little bit poor behind the stumps, and perhaps a bit as captain as well tonight, but we’ll take the two points and move on,” Healy remarked.
Interestingly, the utmost professionalism of the day's chase as the duo added 202 runs came after perhaps Australia’s poorest performance in the fielding department under Healy’s stewardship, with the skipper scolding herself in particular for spilling two of the six catches that were missed.
“I was a little bit disappointed with my glovework, and I had a little bit to make up for with the batting, and luckily succeeded,” Healy continued.
From the time statistics was first recorded on fielding metrics in the year 2013, the half-dozen missed catches marked Australia’s worst 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 an issue we’ll review,” Healy said.
This allowed Bangladesh to eke out 198 for 9 after they had chosen to bat first, their best-ever score in an ODI against Australia, with a key batter compiling the maiden fifty ever for the Asian side against the world champions.
But Alana King spellbinding continuous ten-over spell, in which she claimed two wickets for 18 runs with four maidens, was crucial to ensuring the team's target wasn’t too challenging.
Healy Pleased with Win 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 place in the last-four. “That’s really cool,” she said.
The experienced skipper raced to her century off just 73 balls, the quickest hundred of the tournament, and finished with 20 fours off the 77 balls she confronted as she pulled away from Litchfield in the latter stages in the innings after they had gone practically shot for shot towards their half-centuries.
Litchfield Shines with First Tournament Fifty
The young batter Litchfield hit 12 boundaries and one maximum, getting to her first World Cup fifty off 46 balls soon after Healy got there off 43. They went on to achieve the third-highest stand by any Australian duo at a Women’s World Cup.
In the first innings, during the sluggish fielding effort, Healy dropped the simplest of edges off a teammate and also was unable to hold on to a tough skied one off another bowler. Frustratingly, she also did take a clean catch off Brown but didn’t have it reviewed when the umpire rejected their appeal.
The recalled Brown sent down the quickest balls at the World Cup so far but was nonetheless the team's most expensive bowling option, going for 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spin Attack Excel as Alana King Leads
In contrast, the spinners thrived, led by Alana King, whose performance could have been more successful if a fielder hadn’t missed one in the slips.
Fellow spinners Georgia Wareham (2-22 off seven) and Gardner (2-48 off nine) both chipped in, while Sutherland consolidated her standing as the competition's top wicket-taker with her 2-41, bringing her tally to 13.
Rubya Haider’s 44 and another's not out 66 off 80 balls took the team 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 against India a few days earlier.
“It’s always nice when you’ve got the ‘Q’ next to your name in a global tournament,” said player-of-the-match Alana 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.”
