Alyssa Healy has delivered outstanding back-to-back hundreds to guide her team into the semi-finals of the World Cup, driving them to a merciless 10-wicket win over Bangladesh.
The wicketkeeper-batter finished not out on 113 runs, coming just four days after her similarly stellar 142 that defeated hosts India at the identical Vizag stadium. This time, she shared an undefeated double-century first-wicket stand with Phoebe Litchfield (84no) to race to their target of 199 in just 24.5 overs.
“I felt I was a below par with the gloves, and perhaps a bit as skipper as well today, but we’ll accept the win and progress,” Healy remarked.
Interestingly, the supreme professionalism of the day's chase as the duo added 202 runs came after perhaps the team's shoddiest performance in the fielding department under Healy’s leadership, with the skipper criticizing herself in particular for dropping a couple of the six catches that were missed.
“I was a little bit disappointed with my glovework, and I needed to compensate with the bat, and fortunately succeeded,” Healy continued.
From the time data was first taken on fielding metrics in the year 2013, the half-dozen dropped catches represented the team's poorest fielding display at a Women’s World Cup.
“Maybe it’s just that time of the tournament – we’ve been here a little while, and it’s something we’ll analyze,” the captain said.
It helped the opposition to manage 198 for 9 after they had chosen to bat first, their highest score in an One-Day International against Australia, with Sobhana Mostary compiling the maiden half-century ever for the Asian side against the reigning champions.
But the spinner's mesmeric unbroken ten-over bowling performance, in which she took 2-18 with four maidens, was vital to ensuring the team's target remained manageable.
Healy Pleased with Win that Confirms Semi-Final Place
Healy was pleased to discover that the victory, which places her unbeaten team top of the standings on nine points after four wins and a abandoned match, guarantees them a berth in the last-four. “That's fantastic,” she said.
The 35-year-old skipper sped to her hundred off just 73 deliveries, the quickest century of the tournament, and finished with 20 boundaries off the 77 deliveries she confronted as she accelerated from Litchfield in the latter stages in the innings after they had gone practically boundary-for-boundary towards their half-centuries.
Litchfield Impresses with Maiden Tournament Fifty
Left-hander Phoebe Litchfield struck 12 fours and a six, getting to her first tournament fifty off 46 balls shortly after her partner reached hers off 43 balls. They went on to record the third-best partnership by any Aussie duo at a Women’s World Cup.
In the first innings, during the subpar fielding effort, the captain dropped the simplest of edges off Darcie Brown and also failed to hold on to a difficult lofted one off Annabel Sutherland. Annoyingly, she also take a clean catch off the same bowler but failed to review when the umpire turned down their shout.
The recalled Darcie Brown sent down the quickest deliveries at the tournament so far but was still the Aussies’ costliest bowler, conceding 0-52 off her nine overs.
Spinners Thrive as Alana King Leads
Instead, the slow bowlers thrived, led by Alana King, whose spell could have been even more productive if Beth Mooney hadn’t dropped one in the slips.
Fellow spin bowlers Wareham (two for 22 off seven overs) and Ash Gardner (2-48 off nine overs) both chipped in, while Sutherland consolidated her position as the competition's top wicket-taker with her 2-41, bringing her tally to 13.
A batter's 44 runs and another's not out 66 runs off 80 balls took Bangladesh to their highest-ever total against the Aussies, but the total was made to look straightforward by a side who had chased down 330 runs against the Indian side a few days earlier.
“It’s always nice when you’ve got the ‘Q’ next to your name in a World Cup,” said star performer King. “Certainly it won't end here. We look forward to going back to the next venue to take on the English team and the Proteas.”
