Alyssa Healy has executed outstanding back-to-back centuries to guide her team into the semi-finals of the World Cup, inspiring them to a commanding comprehensive victory over their opponents.
The wicketkeeper-batter finished not out on 113, arriving just a few days after her equally impressive 142 that defeated the Indian team at the same Vizag venue. This time, she combined in an unbroken double-century opening partnership with her opening partner (84 not out) to race to their goal of 199 in just under 25 deliveries.
“I felt I was a below par behind the stumps, and perhaps a little bit as skipper as well tonight, but we’ll accept the two points and progress,” she said.
Interestingly, the supreme expertise of the day's chase as the duo added 202 followed possibly Australia’s weakest display in the fielding department under the captain's leadership, with the captain scolding herself in particular for spilling a couple of the half-dozen chances that went down.
“I felt somewhat let down with my wicketkeeping, and I needed to compensate with the bat, and luckily got the job done,” she added.
From the time statistics was first taken on fielding metrics in the year 2013, the six dropped catches marked the team's poorest fielding display at a Women’s World Cup.
“Perhaps it’s just that time of the competition – we’ve been here a little while, and it’s an issue we’ll reflect on,” Healy commented.
This allowed the opposition to eke out 9-198 after they had opted to bat, their highest total in an One-Day International against Australia, with Sobhana Mostary scoring the maiden fifty ever for the Bangladeshi team against the world champions.
But the spinner's mesmeric continuous ten-over spell, in which she claimed 2-18 with four maidens, was key to making sure Australia’s target wasn’t too challenging.
Healy Pleased with Win that Confirms Semi-Final Place
Healy was pleased to learn that the triumph, which puts her unbeaten side at the top of the group table on nine points after four wins and a abandoned match, secures them a berth in the last-four. “That's fantastic,” 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 boundaries off the 77 balls she confronted as she pulled away from her partner 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 Phoebe Litchfield hit 12 boundaries and one maximum, reaching to her maiden World Cup fifty off 46 deliveries soon after Healy got there off 43 balls. They went on to achieve the third-best partnership by any Aussie pair at a Women’s World Cup.
In the first innings, during the subpar fielding display, the captain spilled the easiest of edges off Darcie Brown and also failed to grasp a difficult lofted one off another bowler. Annoyingly, she also take a clear chance off Brown but failed to review when the official turned down their shout.
The reinstated Brown bowled the quickest deliveries at the tournament so far but was nonetheless the team's most expensive bowler, going for 0-52 off her nine overs.
Spin Attack Thrive as Alana King Stars
In contrast, the spinners excelled, led by Alana King, whose performance could have been more successful if Beth Mooney hadn’t missed one in the slip cordon.
Other spinners Wareham (2-22 off seven) and Ash Gardner (2-48 off nine) both chipped in, while Sutherland strengthened her standing as the competition's top wicket-taker with her two for 41, taking her tally to 13.
Rubya Haider’s 44 runs and Mostary’s not out 66 off 80 balls took the team to their highest-ever total against the Aussies, but the total was made to look easy meat by a team who had chased down 330 against the Indian side a few days earlier.
“It's great when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a World Cup,” said star performer Alana King. “Certainly it won't end here. We anticipate going back to the next venue to take on England and the Proteas.”
