Alyssa Healy has delivered superb back-to-back hundreds to guide her team into the last four of the World Cup, driving them to a commanding comprehensive victory over Bangladesh.
The wicketkeeper-batter remained unbeaten on 113, arriving just four days after her equally brilliant 142-run knock that defeated the Indian team at the identical Visakhapatnam stadium. This time, she shared an unbroken double-century opening partnership with Phoebe Litchfield (84no) to dash to their target of 199 in just under 25 deliveries.
“I thought I was a not at my best behind the stumps, and probably a bit as skipper as well today, but we’ll take the two points and move on,” Healy remarked.
Ironically, the supreme professionalism of the day's chase as the duo added 202 runs came after perhaps Australia’s weakest performance in the field under the captain's stewardship, with the captain criticizing herself in particular for spilling a couple of the half-dozen catches that went down.
“I felt somewhat let down with my wicketkeeping, and I needed to compensate with the bat, and fortunately got the job done,” Healy continued.
Since data was initially taken on fielding metrics in the year 2013, the half-dozen missed opportunities marked Australia’s worst fielding showing at a World Cup tournament.
“Perhaps it’s just that time of the tournament – we’ve been here a little while, and it’s an issue we’ll reflect on,” Healy said.
This allowed the opposition to manage 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 Asian side against the reigning champions.
But Alana King mesmeric unbroken 10-over spell, in which she claimed 2-18 with four maidens, was key to ensuring Australia’s target wasn’t too challenging.
Healy Delighted with Win that Confirms Knockout Place
Healy was delighted to discover that the victory, which places her undefeated team at the top of the standings on nine points after four victories and a abandoned match, guarantees them a place in the last-four. “That’s really cool,” she exclaimed.
The experienced skipper raced to her century off just 73 deliveries, the quickest century of the World Cup, and finished with 20 boundaries off the 77 balls she faced as she pulled away from Litchfield later in the knock after they had gone almost boundary-for-boundary towards their fifties.
The Opener Impresses with First Tournament Half-Century
The young batter Litchfield struck 12 fours and a six, getting to her maiden World Cup fifty off 46 deliveries soon after her partner reached hers off 43. They went on to achieve the third-best stand by any Australian pair at a World Cup event.
In the first innings, during the subpar fielding display, Healy spilled the easiest of chances off a teammate and also was unable to hold on to a tough lofted one off Annabel Sutherland. Annoyingly, she also take a clean chance off the same bowler but failed to review when the official rejected their appeal.
The recalled Brown bowled the quickest deliveries at the World Cup so far but was still the team's costliest bowling option, going for 0-52 off her nine overs.
Spin Attack Excel as King Leads
Instead, the spinners excelled, led by Alana King, whose performance could have been more successful if Beth Mooney hadn’t dropped one in the slip cordon.
Fellow spinners Wareham (two for 22 off seven overs) and Gardner (two for 48 off nine overs) both contributed, while Sutherland consolidated her standing as the competition's top wicket-taker with her two for 41, bringing her total to 13.
A batter's 44 runs and Mostary’s not out 66 off 80 balls took the team to their highest-ever score against the Aussies, but the total was rendered straightforward by a side who had successfully pursued 330 against India a few days earlier.
“It's great when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a World Cup,” remarked star performer Alana King. “No doubt it doesn’t stop here. We look forward to returning to Indore to take on England and South Africa.”
