Alyssa Healy has executed brilliant consecutive centuries to lead her squad into the last four of the World Cup, motivating them to a dominant comprehensive trouncing over Bangladesh.
The wicketkeeper-batter finished not out on 113 runs, arriving just a few days after her equally brilliant 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 (84no) to race to their goal of 199 runs in just 24.5 deliveries.
“I thought I was a little bit poor behind the stumps, and probably a bit as captain as well tonight, but we’ll take the win and progress,” she said.
Interestingly, the utmost professionalism of the day's run-chase as the duo added 202 followed possibly Australia’s poorest performance in the field under Healy’s stewardship, with the skipper scolding herself in especial for dropping a couple of the six catches that went down.
“I was a little bit disappointed with my glovework, and I needed to compensate with the bat, and fortunately delivered,” she added.
Since statistics was first taken on fielding performance statistics in 2013, the six dropped opportunities represented the team's worst fielding showing at a Women’s World Cup.
“Maybe it’s just that time of the competition – we’ve been here a little while, and it’s something we’ll analyze,” Healy commented.
This allowed Bangladesh to manage 198 for 9 after they had chosen to bat, their best-ever total in an One-Day International against Australia, with Sobhana Mostary compiling the first fifty ever for the Bangladeshi team against the reigning champions.
But the spinner's mesmeric continuous 10-over bowling performance, in which she claimed two wickets for 18 runs with four maiden overs, was crucial to ensuring the team's chase wasn’t too challenging.
Healy Delighted with Victory that Seals Semi-Final Place
The Australian skipper was thrilled to discover that the victory, which places her unbeaten team at the top of the standings on nine points after four wins and a abandoned match, guarantees them a place in the last-four. “That's great news,” she exclaimed.
The 35-year-old captain sped to her hundred off just 73 balls, the quickest hundred of the World Cup, and finished with 20 fours off the 77 balls she confronted as she pulled away from her partner in the latter stages in the innings after they had gone practically shot for shot towards their half-centuries.
Litchfield Impresses with Maiden Tournament Half-Century
The young batter Phoebe Litchfield struck 12 fours and a six, getting to her first tournament half-century off 46 balls soon after Healy got there off 43. They went on to achieve the third-best stand by any Australian duo at a World Cup event.
Earlier, during the sluggish fielding effort, the captain spilled the simplest of chances off Darcie Brown and also was unable to hold on to a tough lofted one off Annabel Sutherland. Frustratingly, she also did take a clean catch off the same bowler but failed to review when the umpire rejected their shout.
The recalled Darcie Brown bowled the fastest deliveries at the World Cup so far but was still the team's most expensive bowler, conceding 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spinners Excel as Alana King Stars
Instead, the slow bowlers excelled, led by Alana King, whose spell could have been even more productive if Beth Mooney hadn’t dropped one in the slips.
Fellow spinners Georgia Wareham (two for 22 off seven) and Gardner (two for 48 off nine overs) both contributed, while Sutherland consolidated her standing as the tournament’s top wicket-taker with her two for 41, taking her tally to 13.
Rubya Haider’s 44 runs and another's unbeaten 66 off 80 balls took the team to their record total against the Aussies, but the total was rendered straightforward by a team who had chased down 330 runs against the Indian side four days before.
“It's great when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a global tournament,” said player-of-the-match Alana King. “No doubt it won't end here. We anticipate going back to Indore to face England and the Proteas.”