Alyssa Healy has produced outstanding consecutive centuries to steer her team into the semi-finals of the Women's Cricket World Cup, motivating them to a dominant 10-wicket win over their opponents.
Healy remained unbeaten on 113, coming just a few days after her equally stellar 142-run knock that saw off hosts India at the same Vizag venue. This time, she combined in an unbroken double-century opening partnership with Phoebe Litchfield (84no) to race to their goal of 199 runs in just 24.5 overs.
“I thought I was a below par with the gloves, and perhaps a bit as captain as well tonight, but we’ll accept the win and progress,” she said.
Ironically, the supreme expertise of the day's chase as the pair added 202 runs followed perhaps Australia’s shoddiest display in the field under the captain's stewardship, with the captain criticizing herself in particular for dropping two 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 batting, and luckily got the job done,” Healy continued.
Since statistics was initially recorded on fielding statistics in 2013, the six dropped opportunities represented the team's poorest fielding showing at a World Cup tournament.
“Maybe it’s just that time of the competition – we’ve been here a little while, and it’s an issue we’ll analyze,” Healy said.
It helped Bangladesh to eke out 198 for 9 after they had opted to bat, their highest score in an One-Day International against Australia, with Sobhana Mostary compiling the first half-century ever for the Asian side against the reigning champions.
But the spinner's spellbinding continuous ten-over spell, in which she took 2-18 with four maiden overs, was crucial to ensuring Australia’s target wasn’t too challenging.
Healy Delighted with Win that Seals Knockout Spot
The Australian skipper was thrilled to discover that the triumph, which places her undefeated side at the top of the standings on nine points after four victories and a wash-out, secures them a place in the semi-finals. “That’s really cool,” she said.
The 35-year-old captain raced to her century off just 73 balls, the fastest century of the tournament, and ended with 20 boundaries off the 77 balls she confronted as she pulled away from Litchfield in the latter stages in the innings after they had gone almost shot for shot towards their half-centuries.
Litchfield Shines with First World Cup Fifty
The young batter Phoebe Litchfield hit 12 fours and one maximum, getting to her first World Cup fifty off 46 balls 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.
In the first innings, during the sluggish fielding display, Healy dropped the easiest of edges off a teammate and also failed to hold on to a tough lofted one off Annabel Sutherland. Annoyingly, she also take a clean chance off Brown but didn’t have it reviewed when the umpire turned down their appeal.
The reinstated Brown bowled the fastest balls at the World Cup so far but was nonetheless the Aussies’ costliest bowling option, conceding 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spinners Thrive as Alana King Stars
Instead, the spinners excelled, spearheaded by Alana King, whose performance could have been more successful if Beth Mooney hadn’t missed one in the slip cordon.
Fellow spinners Wareham (2-22 off seven) and Gardner (two for 48 off nine) both contributed, while Annabel Sutherland strengthened her standing as the competition's leading wicket-taker with her two for 41, taking her tally to thirteen.
A batter's 44 runs and another's not out 66 runs off 80 balls took the team to their record total against the Australians, but the target was made to look straightforward by a team who had chased down 330 runs against the Indian side four days earlier.
“It's fantastic when you’ve got the ‘Q’ next to your name in a World Cup,” remarked star performer King. “Certainly it won't end here. We anticipate going back to Indore to face the English team and the Proteas.”
