Alyssa Healy has produced superb consecutive centuries to steer her team into the semi-finals of the Women's Cricket World Cup, motivating them to a commanding 10-wicket win over Bangladesh.
Healy finished unbeaten on 113 runs, coming just a few days after her equally impressive 142-run knock that saw off the Indian team at the same Visakhapatnam stadium. This time, she shared an undefeated double-century opening partnership with her opening partner (84no) to chase to their goal of 199 in just under 25 deliveries.
“I felt I was a below par with the gloves, and perhaps a little bit as captain as well today, but we’ll accept the two points and move on,” she said.
Interestingly, the supreme professionalism of Thursday’s run-chase as the duo put on 202 runs came after perhaps the team's shoddiest performance in the fielding department under Healy’s leadership, with the captain criticizing herself in particular for spilling two of the half-dozen catches that went down.
“I was a little bit disappointed with my wicketkeeping, and I had a little bit to make up for with the batting, and fortunately delivered,” she added.
Since statistics was first taken on fielding performance metrics in 2013, the half-dozen dropped opportunities marked the team's worst fielding showing at a World Cup tournament.
“Perhaps it’s just that phase of the competition – we’ve been here a little while, and it’s an issue we’ll reflect on,” Healy commented.
It helped the opposition to eke out 198 for 9 after they had opted to bat, their best-ever total in an One-Day International against Australia, with a key batter compiling the maiden fifty ever for the Bangladeshi team against the reigning champions.
But the spinner's mesmeric unbroken 10-over bowling performance, in which she claimed 2-18 with four maidens, was key to ensuring the team's chase remained manageable.
The Captain Pleased with Win that Seals Knockout Place
The Australian skipper was delighted to learn that the victory, which puts her undefeated team top of the group table on nine points after four wins and a wash-out, guarantees them a berth in the semi-finals. “That’s really cool,” she said.
The 35-year-old captain sped to her hundred off just 73 deliveries, the fastest century of the tournament, and finished with 20 fours off the 77 balls she faced as she accelerated from Litchfield in the latter stages in the knock after they had gone practically boundary-for-boundary towards their half-centuries.
The Opener Shines with First World Cup Half-Century
Left-hander Litchfield hit 12 fours and a six, getting to her maiden World Cup fifty off 46 balls soon after Healy reached hers off 43 balls. They went on to achieve the third-best stand by any Aussie duo at a World Cup event.
Earlier, during the sluggish fielding effort, the captain spilled the simplest of chances off Darcie Brown and also failed to grasp a tough lofted one off Annabel Sutherland. Frustratingly, she also take a clean catch off Brown but didn’t have it reviewed when the umpire turned down their shout.
The reinstated Darcie Brown bowled the quickest balls at the World Cup so far but was nonetheless the team's costliest bowling option, going for 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spin Attack Thrive as Alana King Leads
Instead, the slow bowlers thrived, led by King, whose spell could have been even more productive if Beth Mooney hadn’t missed one in the slips.
Other spinners Georgia Wareham (two for 22 off seven) and Gardner (2-48 off nine) both chipped in, while Annabel Sutherland strengthened her position as the tournament’s leading wicket-taker with her 2-41, bringing her tally to thirteen.
A batter's 44 and another's unbeaten 66 runs off 80 deliveries took the team to their highest-ever total against the Aussies, but the total was rendered easy meat by a team who had chased down 330 runs against India four days before.
“It's great when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a global tournament,” remarked star performer Alana King. “Certainly it won't end here. We look forward to going back to the next venue to face the English team and South Africa.”
