Alyssa Healy has delivered brilliant back-to-back hundreds to lead her team into the last four of the World Cup, driving them to a dominant comprehensive trouncing over their opponents.
Healy remained not out on 113 runs, arriving just four days after her similarly stellar 142-run knock that defeated hosts India at the same Visakhapatnam venue. This time, she combined in an unbroken double-century opening partnership with her opening partner (84no) to race to their target of 199 in just 24.5 overs.
“I felt I was a not at my best with the gloves, and probably a little bit as captain as well today, but we’ll take the win and move on,” Healy remarked.
Interestingly, the supreme professionalism of Thursday’s run-chase as the duo put on 202 came after possibly the team's shoddiest performance in the fielding department under the captain's leadership, with the captain criticizing herself in particular for spilling a couple of the six catches that went down.
“I felt somewhat let down with my glovework, and I had a little bit to make up for with the batting, and fortunately got the job done,” she added.
Since statistics was initially recorded on fielding metrics in 2013, the half-dozen dropped catches represented the team's poorest fielding showing at a World Cup tournament.
“Maybe it’s just that time of the competition – we’ve been here a little while, and it’s something we’ll review,” Healy said.
It helped Bangladesh to eke out 198 for 9 after they had chosen to bat first, their highest total in an One-Day International against Australia, with Sobhana Mostary compiling the first half-century ever for the Asian side against the world champions.
But the spinner's mesmeric unbroken ten-over spell, in which she claimed 2-18 with four maidens, was crucial to ensuring Australia’s target wasn’t too challenging.
Healy Pleased with Victory that Seals Knockout Spot
Healy was pleased to discover that the triumph, which places her unbeaten side top of the group table on nine points after four victories and a abandoned match, guarantees them a place in the last-four. “That's great news,” she said.
The 35-year-old skipper sped to her hundred off just 73 deliveries, the fastest hundred of the tournament, and ended with 20 boundaries off the 77 deliveries she confronted as she pulled away from Litchfield later in the knock after they had gone practically shot for shot towards their fifties.
Litchfield Impresses with First Tournament Fifty
Left-hander Litchfield struck 12 boundaries and a six, reaching to her maiden World Cup half-century off 46 balls soon after Healy reached hers off 43. They went on to record the third-highest stand by any Australian pair at a Women’s World Cup.
In the first innings, during the subpar fielding effort, the captain spilled the easiest of chances off a teammate and also was unable to hold on to a difficult lofted one off Annabel Sutherland. Frustratingly, she also did take a clean chance off the same bowler but failed to review when the official rejected their shout.
The reinstated Darcie Brown bowled the quickest deliveries at the World Cup so far but was nonetheless the Aussies’ most expensive bowling option, conceding 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spinners Thrive as Alana King Stars
Instead, the slow bowlers thrived, spearheaded by Alana King, whose spell could have been more successful if a fielder hadn’t dropped one in the slips.
Fellow spinners Georgia Wareham (two for 22 off seven) and Ash Gardner (2-48 off nine) both chipped in, while Sutherland consolidated her position as the competition's top wicket-taker with her 2-41, taking her tally to thirteen.
A batter's 44 and another's not out 66 runs off 80 balls took the team to their record score against the Aussies, but the total was rendered easy meat by a team who had chased down 330 runs against the Indian side a few days earlier.
“It’s always nice 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 look forward to going back to the next venue to take on the English team and South Africa.”
