Alyssa Healy has produced outstanding back-to-back hundreds to lead her squad into the semi-finals of the World Cup, motivating them to a dominant comprehensive victory over Bangladesh.
Healy remained not out on 113 runs, arriving just four days after her equally brilliant 142 that defeated hosts India at the identical Visakhapatnam stadium. This time, she shared an unbroken 200-run opening partnership with Phoebe Litchfield (84no) to race to their target of 199 runs in just 24.5 overs.
“I thought I was a not at my best with the gloves, and probably a bit as skipper as well tonight, but we’ll accept the win and move on,” she said.
Ironically, the utmost expertise of the day's chase as the duo put on 202 runs followed possibly the team's shoddiest display in the field under Healy’s stewardship, with the captain scolding herself in especial for dropping two of the half-dozen catches that went down.
“I was a little bit disappointed with my wicketkeeping, and I needed to compensate with the batting, and luckily got the job done,” she added.
From the time statistics was first recorded on fielding performance statistics in 2013, the half-dozen missed catches marked the team's worst fielding showing at a World Cup tournament.
“Perhaps it’s just that phase of the tournament – we’ve been here a little while, and it’s something we’ll reflect on,” the captain said.
This allowed the opposition to eke out 198 for 9 after they had opted to bat first, their highest total in an One-Day International against the Aussies, with a key batter scoring the maiden fifty ever for the Bangladeshi team against the world champions.
But Alana King spellbinding unbroken ten-over bowling performance, in which she claimed 2-18 with four maidens, was key to making sure Australia’s chase remained manageable.
The Captain Delighted with Victory that Seals Knockout Place
Healy was thrilled to learn that the triumph, which puts her undefeated team at the top of the standings on nine points after four wins and a abandoned match, guarantees them a berth in the semi-finals. “That's great news,” she exclaimed.
The experienced skipper raced to her century off just 73 balls, the fastest century of the tournament, and ended with 20 boundaries off the 77 deliveries she faced as she accelerated from her partner later in the knock after they had gone almost boundary-for-boundary towards their half-centuries.
Litchfield Shines with Maiden World Cup Fifty
The young batter Phoebe Litchfield hit 12 fours and a six, reaching to her maiden tournament half-century off 46 balls shortly after Healy got there off 43. They went on to record the third-highest stand by any Australian pair at a World Cup event.
In the first innings, during the subpar fielding display, Healy spilled the simplest of edges off Darcie Brown and also failed to grasp a difficult skied one off another bowler. Annoyingly, she also did take a clean catch off Brown but failed to review when the umpire turned down their shout.
The recalled Brown bowled the quickest deliveries at the tournament so far but was nonetheless the team's costliest bowling option, conceding 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spinners Thrive as King Stars
In contrast, the slow bowlers thrived, spearheaded by King, whose spell could have been even more productive if a fielder hadn’t dropped one in the slips.
Fellow spin bowlers Wareham (2-22 off seven overs) and Gardner (two for 48 off nine overs) both contributed, while Annabel Sutherland strengthened her position as the competition's top wicket-taker with her 2-41, bringing her total to 13.
A batter's 44 and Mostary’s not out 66 runs off 80 deliveries took the team to their record score against the Aussies, but the target was rendered straightforward by a team who had chased down 330 against India a few days before.
“It's great when you’ve got the ‘Q’ next to your name in a global tournament,” said star performer Alana King. “Certainly it doesn’t stop here. We look forward to going back to Indore to take on the English team and the Proteas.”
