Alyssa Healy has executed superb back-to-back centuries to steer her squad into the semi-finals of the Women's Cricket World Cup, inspiring them to a merciless comprehensive win over Bangladesh.
The wicketkeeper-batter remained unbeaten on 113 runs, arriving just a few days after her similarly impressive 142 that defeated the Indian team at the identical Visakhapatnam stadium. This time, she combined in an unbroken 200-run first-wicket stand with her opening partner (84no) to chase to their goal of 199 runs in just 24.5 deliveries.
“I felt I was a not at my best with the gloves, and probably a bit as skipper as well tonight, but we’ll take the two points and progress,” she said.
Interestingly, the utmost professionalism of Thursday’s chase as the duo added 202 came after possibly Australia’s weakest display in the field under the captain's leadership, with the captain criticizing herself in particular for spilling two of the half-dozen chances that were missed.
“I was a little bit disappointed with my glovework, and I needed to compensate with the batting, and luckily succeeded,” she added.
Since statistics was first recorded on fielding performance statistics in 2013, the six missed catches represented Australia’s poorest fielding display at a World Cup tournament.
“Perhaps it’s just that time of the competition – we’ve been here a little while, and it’s an issue we’ll review,” Healy said.
This allowed the opposition to eke out 198 for 9 after they had opted to bat first, their best-ever total in an ODI against the Aussies, with Sobhana Mostary scoring the first fifty ever for the Asian side against the world champions.
But Alana King mesmeric unbroken 10-over bowling performance, in which she claimed 2-18 with four maidens, was crucial to ensuring the team's chase wasn’t too challenging.
The Captain Pleased with Win that Seals Semi-Final Place
Healy was thrilled to learn that the triumph, which puts her unbeaten side top of the standings on nine points after four wins and a abandoned match, secures them a berth in the last-four. “That’s really cool,” she said.
The 35-year-old skipper sped to her hundred off just 73 deliveries, the quickest hundred of the tournament, and finished with 20 boundaries off the 77 deliveries she faced as she pulled away from her partner in the latter stages in the innings after they had gone practically boundary-for-boundary towards their half-centuries.
The Opener Impresses with First Tournament Half-Century
Left-hander Litchfield struck 12 boundaries and one maximum, getting to her first tournament fifty off 46 balls soon after her partner got there off 43 balls. They went on to record the third-highest stand by any Australian pair at a Women’s World Cup.
Earlier, during the sluggish fielding display, the captain spilled the simplest of edges off Darcie Brown and also failed to grasp a difficult skied one off Annabel Sutherland. Annoyingly, she also take a clear catch off the same bowler but failed to review when the official rejected their shout.
The recalled Brown sent down the quickest deliveries at the World Cup so far but was still the team's most expensive bowling option, going for 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spinners Excel as King Stars
In contrast, the slow bowlers thrived, spearheaded by King, whose spell could have been more successful if Beth Mooney hadn’t missed one in the slips.
Other spin bowlers Wareham (2-22 off seven) and Gardner (two for 48 off nine) both contributed, while Sutherland strengthened her position as the tournament’s top wicket-taker with her two for 41, bringing her total to thirteen.
Rubya Haider’s 44 runs and Mostary’s unbeaten 66 off 80 balls took Bangladesh to their highest-ever score against the Aussies, but the total was made to look straightforward by a team 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,” said star performer Alana King. “Certainly it won't end here. We anticipate returning to the next venue to take on England and South Africa.”
