Alyssa Healy has delivered superb consecutive centuries to steer her team into the last four of the Women's Cricket World Cup, motivating them to a merciless comprehensive win over Bangladesh.
The wicketkeeper-batter finished unbeaten on 113 runs, coming just a few days after her similarly stellar 142 that defeated the Indian team at the same Visakhapatnam venue. This time, she combined in an unbroken 200-run first-wicket stand with her opening partner (84 not out) to chase to their target of 199 runs in just 24.5 deliveries.
“I felt I was a not at my best with the gloves, and perhaps a little bit as captain as well today, but we’ll take the win and move on,” she said.
Interestingly, the supreme professionalism of Thursday’s chase as the duo put on 202 came after perhaps the team's shoddiest performance in the fielding department under the captain's leadership, with the skipper criticizing herself in particular for dropping a couple of the half-dozen catches that went down.
“I felt somewhat let down with my glovework, and I needed to compensate with the batting, and fortunately got the job done,” Healy continued.
Since data was first taken on fielding performance metrics in 2013, the half-dozen missed opportunities represented the team's poorest fielding display at a World Cup tournament.
“Perhaps it’s just that phase of the competition – we’ve been here a while, and it’s an issue we’ll analyze,” Healy said.
It helped the opposition to eke out 198 for 9 after they had opted to bat, their best-ever score in an One-Day International against Australia, with a key batter compiling the maiden half-century ever for the Bangladeshi team against the world champions.
But the spinner's mesmeric continuous 10-over bowling performance, in which she took 2-18 with four maiden overs, was vital to making sure the team's target wasn’t too challenging.
Healy Pleased with Victory that Confirms Knockout Place
Healy was thrilled to learn that the victory, which places her unbeaten side top of the standings on nine points after four wins and a wash-out, guarantees them a berth in the last-four. “That's fantastic,” she said.
The experienced skipper raced to her hundred off just 73 deliveries, the fastest hundred of the World Cup, and ended with 20 boundaries off the 77 deliveries she faced as she pulled away from Litchfield later in the knock after they had gone almost shot for shot towards their half-centuries.
The Opener Shines with Maiden World Cup Half-Century
The young batter Phoebe Litchfield hit 12 boundaries and a six, getting to her maiden tournament half-century off 46 deliveries soon after her partner got there off 43 balls. They went on to record the third-best stand by any Aussie pair at a Women’s World Cup.
Earlier, during the sluggish fielding effort, the captain dropped the simplest of edges off a teammate and also was unable to grasp a difficult skied one off another bowler. Frustratingly, she also take a clear chance off Brown but failed to review when the official rejected their shout.
The recalled Brown sent down the quickest deliveries at the World Cup so far but was nonetheless the team's most expensive bowling option, going for 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spinners Excel as King Stars
Instead, the slow bowlers excelled, spearheaded by King, whose performance could have been even more productive if Beth Mooney hadn’t dropped one in the slip cordon.
Other spin bowlers Wareham (2-22 off seven overs) and Gardner (2-48 off nine) both contributed, while Annabel Sutherland strengthened her position as the competition's top wicket-taker with her 2-41, bringing her tally to thirteen.
Rubya Haider’s 44 and Mostary’s not out 66 off 80 deliveries took the team to their highest-ever total against the Aussies, but the total was made to look straightforward by a team who had successfully pursued 330 against India a few days before.
“It's great when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a global tournament,” remarked player-of-the-match King. “Certainly it doesn’t stop here. We look forward to returning to Indore to face England and South Africa.”
