Alyssa Healy has delivered brilliant back-to-back hundreds to guide her team into the last four of the World Cup, driving them to a merciless comprehensive victory over Bangladesh.
The wicketkeeper-batter finished unbeaten on 113 runs, coming just four days after her similarly stellar 142-run knock that defeated hosts India at the same Visakhapatnam stadium. This time, she combined in an undefeated double-century first-wicket stand with Phoebe Litchfield (84 not out) to chase to their goal of 199 runs in just 24.5 deliveries.
“I felt I was a little bit poor with the gloves, and perhaps a bit as captain as well tonight, but we’ll accept the win and move on,” Healy remarked.
Ironically, the supreme expertise of Thursday’s chase as the duo put on 202 followed perhaps Australia’s poorest performance in the fielding department under Healy’s stewardship, with the skipper criticizing herself in especial for spilling a couple of the six chances that went down.
“I felt somewhat let down with my wicketkeeping, and I needed to compensate with the batting, and luckily got the job done,” Healy continued.
Since data was initially recorded on fielding statistics in 2013, the six dropped catches represented the team's poorest fielding showing at a Women’s World Cup.
“Maybe it’s just that phase of the tournament – we’ve been here a while, and it’s an issue we’ll review,” the captain said.
It helped the opposition to eke out 198 for 9 after they had chosen to bat first, their best-ever score in an One-Day International against Australia, with Sobhana Mostary compiling the maiden half-century ever for the Bangladeshi team against the reigning champions.
But the spinner's mesmeric continuous ten-over spell, in which she took two wickets for 18 runs with four maiden overs, was vital to ensuring Australia’s target wasn’t too challenging.
The Captain Pleased with Win that Confirms Knockout Spot
The Australian skipper was pleased to discover that the victory, which places her unbeaten team at the top of the standings on nine points after four victories and a abandoned match, secures them a place in the last-four. “That's great news,” she exclaimed.
The experienced skipper sped to her century off just 73 balls, the fastest hundred of the tournament, and finished with 20 fours off the 77 balls she faced as she accelerated from Litchfield later in the innings after they had gone practically shot for shot towards their half-centuries.
Litchfield Impresses with First Tournament Half-Century
The young batter Phoebe Litchfield struck 12 fours and one maximum, getting to her first World Cup fifty off 46 balls soon after Healy got there off 43. They went on to record the third-best partnership by any Aussie duo at a Women’s World Cup.
In the first innings, during the sluggish 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 take a clean chance off Brown but didn’t have it reviewed when the umpire turned down their appeal.
The reinstated Brown sent down the fastest deliveries at the World Cup so far but was still the team's most expensive bowler, going for 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spin Attack Excel as Alana King Leads
Instead, the spinners thrived, spearheaded by Alana King, whose spell could have been even more productive if Beth Mooney hadn’t dropped one in the slip cordon.
Fellow spin bowlers Wareham (two for 22 off seven) and Gardner (2-48 off nine) both chipped in, while Sutherland consolidated her standing as the competition's top wicket-taker with her 2-41, bringing her total to 13.
Rubya Haider’s 44 runs and Mostary’s not out 66 runs off 80 deliveries took Bangladesh to their record total against the Australians, but the target was made to look straightforward by a team who had chased down 330 against India a few days earlier.
“It's fantastic when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a global tournament,” said player-of-the-match King. “No doubt it doesn’t stop here. We look forward to returning to the next venue to take on the English team and the Proteas.”
