Alyssa Healy has executed brilliant consecutive hundreds to guide her team into the last four of the Women's Cricket World Cup, inspiring them to a dominant 10-wicket win over Bangladesh.
Healy remained not out on 113 runs, coming just four days after her equally stellar 142-run knock that defeated hosts India at the same Vizag venue. This time, she shared an undefeated 200-run first-wicket stand with Phoebe Litchfield (84 not out) to dash to their goal of 199 runs in just 24.5 deliveries.
“I felt I was a not at my best with the gloves, and perhaps a little bit as skipper as well tonight, but we’ll take the two points and progress,” she said.
Ironically, the utmost expertise of the day's chase as the pair put on 202 runs came after possibly the team's shoddiest display in the field under Healy’s stewardship, with the captain scolding herself in particular for spilling a couple of the six catches that went down.
“I felt somewhat let down with my glovework, and I needed to compensate with the bat, and fortunately delivered,” Healy continued.
From the time statistics was first taken on fielding metrics in 2013, the six missed catches marked Australia’s worst 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 analyze,” Healy said.
It helped Bangladesh to manage 198 for 9 after they had opted to bat, their best-ever score in an One-Day International against Australia, with Sobhana Mostary scoring the maiden fifty ever for the Asian side against the world champions.
But Alana King mesmeric continuous ten-over bowling performance, in which she claimed two wickets for 18 runs with four maidens, was key to making sure Australia’s target remained manageable.
The Captain Pleased with Win that Confirms Knockout Spot
Healy was pleased to discover that the victory, which places her unbeaten side top of the group table on nine points after four victories and a wash-out, secures them a berth in the last-four. “That's fantastic,” she exclaimed.
The 35-year-old captain sped to her century off just 73 deliveries, the quickest hundred of the World Cup, and finished with 20 fours off the 77 balls she faced as she accelerated from her partner in the latter stages in the innings after they had gone almost boundary-for-boundary towards their fifties.
The Opener Impresses with Maiden Tournament Fifty
Left-hander Phoebe Litchfield struck 12 boundaries and one maximum, getting to her first World Cup fifty off 46 deliveries shortly after her partner got there off 43 balls. They went on to achieve the third-best partnership by any Aussie pair at a World Cup event.
Earlier, during the sluggish fielding display, Healy spilled the easiest of edges off Darcie Brown and also failed to hold on to a tough skied one off Annabel Sutherland. Frustratingly, she also did take a clean chance off Brown but didn’t have it reviewed when the official turned down their shout.
The reinstated Brown bowled the fastest deliveries at the tournament so far but was still the Aussies’ costliest bowling option, going for 0-52 off her nine overs.
Spin Attack Excel as Alana King Stars
In contrast, the slow bowlers excelled, spearheaded by Alana King, whose performance could have been even more productive if a fielder hadn’t dropped one in the slip cordon.
Fellow spinners Georgia Wareham (2-22 off seven) and Ash Gardner (2-48 off nine overs) both chipped in, while Sutherland consolidated her standing as the competition's top wicket-taker with her two for 41, bringing her total to 13.
Rubya Haider’s 44 and Mostary’s not out 66 runs off 80 deliveries took Bangladesh to their record total against the Australians, but the target was rendered easy meat by a side who had successfully pursued 330 against the Indian side four days before.
“It's great when you’ve got the ‘Q’ next to your name in a global tournament,” said player-of-the-match Alana King. “Certainly it won't end here. We anticipate going back to the next venue to face the English team and the Proteas.”
