Alyssa Healy has executed outstanding back-to-back centuries to steer her team into the last four of the World Cup, motivating them to a commanding 10-wicket trouncing over Bangladesh.
Healy remained unbeaten on 113 runs, arriving just a few days after her similarly impressive 142-run knock that saw off hosts India at the identical Vizag venue. This time, she combined in an unbroken double-century opening partnership with Phoebe Litchfield (84no) to dash to their goal of 199 runs in just 24.5 overs.
“I thought I was a not at my best behind the stumps, and perhaps a little bit as captain as well today, but we’ll take the two points and progress,” Healy remarked.
Interestingly, the supreme professionalism of the day's chase as the pair put on 202 followed possibly the team's shoddiest display in the field under Healy’s stewardship, with the skipper criticizing herself in particular for dropping a couple of the six chances that were missed.
“I was a little bit disappointed with my glovework, and I needed to compensate with the bat, and fortunately succeeded,” she added.
From the time data was initially recorded on fielding performance metrics in the year 2013, the six dropped opportunities represented Australia’s poorest fielding display at a Women’s World Cup.
“Maybe it’s just that phase of the tournament – we’ve been here a while, and it’s an issue we’ll reflect on,” Healy commented.
This allowed the opposition to eke out 198 for 9 after they had chosen to bat, their highest total in an One-Day International against the Aussies, with a key batter compiling the maiden half-century ever for the Bangladeshi team against the reigning champions.
But the spinner's spellbinding unbroken 10-over bowling performance, in which she claimed 2-18 with four maiden overs, was key to making sure Australia’s chase remained manageable.
Healy Delighted with Victory that Seals Knockout Spot
The Australian skipper was thrilled to discover that the victory, which puts her unbeaten side 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 great news,” she said.
The experienced skipper sped to her century off just 73 deliveries, the quickest hundred of the tournament, and finished with 20 boundaries off the 77 balls she faced as she pulled away from her partner later in the innings after they had gone almost boundary-for-boundary towards their fifties.
The Opener Impresses with Maiden Tournament Fifty
The young batter Litchfield hit 12 boundaries and one maximum, getting to her first World Cup half-century off 46 balls soon after Healy reached hers off 43 balls. They went on to record the third-highest partnership by any Aussie pair at a Women’s World Cup.
In the first innings, during the subpar fielding display, Healy spilled the simplest of chances off a teammate and also was unable to grasp a tough lofted one off another bowler. Annoyingly, she also did take a clean catch off Brown but didn’t have it reviewed when the official rejected their shout.
The reinstated Brown sent down the fastest deliveries at the World Cup so far but was still the team's costliest bowling option, conceding 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spin Attack Thrive as Alana King Leads
In contrast, the slow bowlers excelled, spearheaded by Alana King, whose performance could have been more successful if a fielder hadn’t missed one in the slip cordon.
Other spin bowlers Georgia Wareham (two for 22 off seven) and Ash Gardner (two for 48 off nine overs) both chipped in, while Sutherland strengthened her standing as the tournament’s top wicket-taker with her 2-41, taking her total to thirteen.
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 team who had chased down 330 against the Indian side four days earlier.
“It’s always nice when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a global tournament,” remarked player-of-the-match Alana King. “Certainly it doesn’t stop here. We look forward to going back to Indore to take on the English team and South Africa.”
