Alyssa Healy has delivered outstanding consecutive hundreds to guide her squad into the semi-finals of the World Cup, inspiring them to a dominant comprehensive win over their opponents.
Healy finished unbeaten on 113, arriving just four days after her similarly stellar 142-run knock that defeated hosts India at the same Visakhapatnam stadium. This time, she combined in an undefeated double-century first-wicket stand with Phoebe Litchfield (84no) to race to their goal of 199 in just under 25 overs.
“I thought I was a not at my best behind the stumps, and perhaps a little bit as skipper as well tonight, but we’ll accept the win and move on,” Healy remarked.
Interestingly, the supreme professionalism of Thursday’s chase as the duo added 202 runs came after possibly Australia’s poorest performance in the field under the captain's leadership, with the captain scolding herself in particular for dropping a couple of the six chances that were missed.
“I felt somewhat let down with my wicketkeeping, and I had a little bit to make up for with the batting, and fortunately delivered,” she added.
From the time statistics was first recorded on fielding performance statistics in the year 2013, the six dropped opportunities represented Australia’s poorest fielding showing at a World Cup tournament.
“Maybe it’s just that phase of the tournament – we’ve been here a while, and it’s something we’ll reflect on,” Healy said.
It helped Bangladesh to eke out 9-198 after they had chosen to bat first, their best-ever total in an ODI against Australia, with a key batter scoring the maiden fifty ever for the Bangladeshi team against the reigning champions.
But Alana King mesmeric unbroken ten-over bowling performance, in which she took two wickets for 18 runs with four maidens, was vital to making sure Australia’s chase remained manageable.
Healy Delighted with Win that Seals Semi-Final Place
Healy was thrilled to learn that the victory, which puts her unbeaten team top of the group table on nine points after four wins and a abandoned match, guarantees them a berth in the last-four. “That's great news,” she exclaimed.
The 35-year-old skipper sped to her century off just 73 balls, the quickest century of the tournament, and finished with 20 fours off the 77 deliveries she faced as she accelerated from Litchfield in the latter stages in the innings after they had gone almost shot for shot towards their fifties.
Litchfield Shines with First Tournament Fifty
Left-hander Litchfield struck 12 fours and one maximum, getting to her maiden World Cup fifty off 46 balls soon after Healy got there off 43. They went on to record the third-best partnership by any Australian pair at a World Cup event.
In the first innings, during the sluggish fielding effort, Healy dropped the simplest of chances off Darcie Brown and also failed to grasp a tough skied one off Annabel Sutherland. Frustratingly, she also take a clean chance off the same bowler but didn’t have it reviewed when the umpire rejected their shout.
The recalled Darcie Brown sent down the quickest balls at the World Cup so far but was still the team's most expensive bowler, going for 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spin Attack Thrive as Alana King Leads
Instead, the slow bowlers excelled, led by Alana King, whose performance could have been more successful if Beth Mooney hadn’t dropped one in the slips.
Fellow spinners Wareham (two for 22 off seven overs) and Gardner (2-48 off nine overs) both contributed, while Annabel Sutherland strengthened her standing as the tournament’s leading wicket-taker with her two for 41, taking her total to 13.
Rubya Haider’s 44 runs and another's not out 66 off 80 balls took Bangladesh to their highest-ever total against the Aussies, but the total was rendered straightforward by a team who had chased down 330 against India a few days before.
“It’s always nice when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a global tournament,” remarked star performer King. “Certainly it won't end here. We anticipate going back to Indore to take on England and South Africa.”
