Alyssa Healy has produced brilliant consecutive centuries to lead her squad into the semi-finals of the Women's Cricket World Cup, driving them to a commanding comprehensive trouncing over their opponents.
The wicketkeeper-batter remained unbeaten on 113, coming just four days after her similarly stellar 142 that defeated the Indian team at the identical Vizag stadium. This time, she shared an undefeated double-century opening partnership with her opening partner (84no) to chase to their target of 199 runs in just under 25 deliveries.
“I felt I was a not at my best behind the stumps, and perhaps a little bit as captain as well tonight, but we’ll accept the two points and move on,” she said.
Ironically, the utmost expertise of Thursday’s run-chase as the pair put on 202 followed perhaps the team's poorest performance in the field under the captain's stewardship, with the skipper scolding herself in particular for spilling a couple of the half-dozen catches that were missed.
“I felt somewhat let down with my glovework, and I needed to compensate with the bat, and luckily delivered,” Healy continued.
Since data was first recorded on fielding performance statistics in the year 2013, the six dropped opportunities represented the team's poorest fielding display 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 an issue we’ll reflect on,” Healy said.
It helped the opposition to manage 198 for 9 after they had opted to bat first, their best-ever score 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 spell, in which she took 2-18 with four maidens, was crucial to ensuring the team's target wasn’t too challenging.
Healy Delighted with Victory that Seals Semi-Final Spot
The Australian skipper was pleased to learn that the triumph, which puts her undefeated team top of the standings on nine points after four victories and a abandoned match, secures them a place in the last-four. “That's fantastic,” she exclaimed.
The experienced skipper raced to her century off just 73 balls, the quickest hundred of the World Cup, and ended with 20 boundaries off the 77 deliveries she confronted as she pulled away from her partner in the latter stages in the innings after they had gone almost boundary-for-boundary towards their fifties.
Litchfield Shines with First Tournament Half-Century
Left-hander Litchfield hit 12 boundaries and a six, getting to her maiden World Cup half-century off 46 deliveries soon after Healy got there off 43. They went on to achieve the third-best stand by any Australian pair at a World Cup event.
Earlier, during the sluggish fielding effort, Healy dropped the easiest of edges off Darcie Brown and also was unable to hold on to a tough skied one off Annabel Sutherland. Frustratingly, she also did take a clean catch off the same bowler but didn’t have it reviewed when the umpire rejected their appeal.
The reinstated Brown bowled the fastest deliveries at the World Cup so far but was still the team's costliest bowling option, going for 0-52 off her nine overs.
Spin Attack Thrive as King Leads
In contrast, the spinners thrived, led by Alana King, whose spell could have been even more productive if Beth Mooney hadn’t missed one in the slip cordon.
Other spinners Wareham (2-22 off seven) and 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, taking her tally to 13.
A batter's 44 and another's unbeaten 66 runs off 80 balls took the team to their record score against the Australians, but the target was made to look easy meat by a team who had successfully pursued 330 runs against the Indian side four days earlier.
“It’s always nice when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a World Cup,” said star performer Alana King. “Certainly it doesn’t stop here. We anticipate returning to Indore to take on England and the Proteas.”
