Alyssa Healy has executed superb consecutive hundreds to steer her squad into the last four of the World Cup, inspiring them to a commanding 10-wicket trouncing over Bangladesh.
Healy finished not out on 113, arriving just four days after her equally stellar 142-run knock that defeated the Indian team at the identical Vizag stadium. This time, she shared an undefeated 200-run opening partnership with Phoebe Litchfield (84no) to race to their goal of 199 runs in just under 25 overs.
“I thought I was a little bit poor with the gloves, and probably a little bit as captain as well tonight, but we’ll accept the two points and progress,” Healy remarked.
Interestingly, the supreme expertise of Thursday’s run-chase as the pair put on 202 runs followed perhaps the team's weakest performance in the fielding department under the captain's stewardship, with the captain criticizing herself in especial for spilling two of the half-dozen catches that went down.
“I was a little bit disappointed with my wicketkeeping, and I needed to compensate with the bat, and luckily delivered,” she added.
From the time data was initially recorded on fielding metrics in 2013, the six missed catches marked Australia’s worst fielding display at a World Cup tournament.
“Perhaps it’s just that phase of the tournament – we’ve been here a 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 total in an One-Day International against Australia, with a key batter scoring the first half-century ever for the Asian side against the reigning champions.
But the spinner's mesmeric unbroken 10-over bowling performance, in which she took 2-18 with four maiden overs, was crucial to ensuring the team's chase wasn’t too challenging.
The Captain Pleased with Victory that Confirms Knockout Spot
The Australian skipper was thrilled to learn that the triumph, which places her undefeated side 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 exclaimed.
The 35-year-old skipper sped to her hundred off just 73 balls, the quickest century of the World Cup, and ended with 20 boundaries off the 77 deliveries she faced as she accelerated from Litchfield in the latter stages in the innings after they had gone practically boundary-for-boundary towards their fifties.
Litchfield Shines with First Tournament Half-Century
The young batter Litchfield hit 12 fours and a six, getting to her first World Cup fifty off 46 deliveries shortly after Healy got there off 43. They went on to record the third-best partnership by any Aussie duo at a World Cup event.
In the first innings, during the subpar fielding display, Healy dropped the easiest of chances off Darcie Brown and also failed to hold on to a tough lofted one off Annabel Sutherland. Annoyingly, she also did take a clean chance off Brown but didn’t have it reviewed when the official rejected their shout.
The recalled Darcie Brown bowled the quickest balls at the tournament so far but was nonetheless the Aussies’ costliest bowling option, going for 0-52 off her nine overs.
Spinners Excel as Alana King Leads
In contrast, the spinners excelled, spearheaded by Alana King, whose spell could have been even more productive if a fielder hadn’t missed one in the slip cordon.
Fellow spin bowlers Georgia Wareham (2-22 off seven) and Ash Gardner (2-48 off nine overs) both contributed, while Annabel Sutherland consolidated her position as the competition's top wicket-taker with her two for 41, bringing her tally to 13.
Rubya Haider’s 44 runs and another's not out 66 off 80 balls took the team to their record total against the Australians, but the target was made to look easy meat by a side who had successfully pursued 330 runs against the Indian side a few days before.
“It’s always nice when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a World Cup,” said star performer King. “No doubt it doesn’t stop here. We look forward to returning to Indore to take on the English team and South Africa.”
