Alyssa Healy has delivered outstanding back-to-back hundreds to steer her squad into the last four of the World Cup, driving them to a merciless comprehensive trouncing over Bangladesh.
The wicketkeeper-batter remained not out on 113 runs, coming just four days after her similarly brilliant 142 that defeated hosts India at the same Visakhapatnam stadium. This time, she shared an undefeated 200-run first-wicket stand with Phoebe Litchfield (84 not out) to chase to their goal of 199 runs in just under 25 overs.
“I felt I was a below par with the gloves, and perhaps a bit as captain as well tonight, but we’ll take the two points and move on,” she said.
Interestingly, the utmost expertise of the day's run-chase as the pair put on 202 runs followed possibly the team's weakest display in the field under Healy’s leadership, with the skipper scolding herself in particular for spilling two of the half-dozen chances that went down.
“I felt somewhat let down with my wicketkeeping, and I needed to compensate with the batting, and fortunately delivered,” she added.
Since data was first recorded on fielding performance statistics in the year 2013, the six dropped catches represented Australia’s poorest fielding showing at a World Cup tournament.
“Perhaps it’s just that phase of the tournament – we’ve been here a little while, and it’s something we’ll review,” the captain commented.
This allowed the opposition to manage 9-198 after they had opted to bat, their best-ever total in an One-Day International against the Aussies, with a key batter compiling the first fifty ever for the Bangladeshi team against the world champions.
But the spinner's mesmeric unbroken ten-over bowling performance, in which she took two wickets for 18 runs with four maidens, was vital to ensuring the team's target wasn’t too challenging.
The Captain Delighted with Victory that Seals Semi-Final Place
The Australian skipper was delighted to discover that the triumph, which puts her unbeaten side top of the group table on nine points after four victories and a wash-out, secures them a berth in the semi-finals. “That's fantastic,” she said.
The experienced captain raced to her century off just 73 deliveries, the quickest century of the tournament, and finished with 20 fours off the 77 deliveries she faced as she pulled away from her partner in the latter stages in the knock after they had gone almost shot for shot towards their fifties.
The Opener Shines with Maiden Tournament Half-Century
The young batter Phoebe Litchfield struck 12 boundaries and a six, getting to her first World Cup fifty off 46 deliveries soon after her partner reached hers off 43. They went on to achieve the third-best stand by any Aussie duo at a World Cup event.
In the first innings, during the sluggish fielding effort, the captain dropped the simplest of edges off a teammate and also failed to grasp a difficult lofted one off another bowler. Frustratingly, she also did take a clean chance off Brown but failed to review when the umpire rejected their appeal.
The recalled Brown bowled the quickest deliveries at the tournament so far but was nonetheless the Aussies’ most expensive bowler, going for 0-52 off her nine overs.
Spinners Excel as Alana King Stars
Instead, the slow bowlers thrived, led by Alana King, whose performance could have been more successful if Beth Mooney hadn’t missed one in the slips.
Fellow spin bowlers Georgia Wareham (2-22 off seven overs) and Gardner (two for 48 off nine overs) both chipped in, while Sutherland consolidated her standing as the tournament’s top wicket-taker with her two for 41, taking her tally to thirteen.
A batter's 44 runs and Mostary’s unbeaten 66 off 80 balls took the team to their highest-ever score against the Australians, but the total was made to look straightforward by a team who had successfully pursued 330 against the Indian side a few days before.
“It's fantastic when you’ve got the ‘Q’ next to your name in a World Cup,” remarked star performer Alana King. “Certainly it doesn’t stop here. We look forward to going back to the next venue to face the English team and South Africa.”
