Alyssa Healy has delivered outstanding consecutive centuries to steer her team into the last four of the World Cup, motivating them to a merciless comprehensive victory over Bangladesh.
Healy finished unbeaten on 113 runs, arriving just four days after her equally stellar 142 that saw off the Indian team at the same Vizag venue. This time, she combined in an unbroken double-century first-wicket stand with Phoebe Litchfield (84no) to chase to their target of 199 runs in just 24.5 overs.
“I thought I was a little bit poor behind the stumps, and perhaps a bit as captain as well tonight, but we’ll accept the win and progress,” she said.
Ironically, the utmost professionalism of the day's run-chase as the pair added 202 came after possibly the team's weakest display in the field under Healy’s stewardship, with the skipper criticizing herself in especial for dropping two of the half-dozen catches that were missed.
“I felt somewhat let down with my wicketkeeping, and I had a little bit to make up for with the bat, and fortunately got the job done,” Healy continued.
From the time statistics was first recorded on fielding performance statistics in 2013, the half-dozen missed catches represented Australia’s worst fielding showing at a World Cup tournament.
“Perhaps it’s just that time of the competition – we’ve been here a while, and it’s something we’ll reflect on,” Healy said.
It helped Bangladesh to manage 9-198 after they had chosen to bat, their highest total in an ODI against the Aussies, with a key batter scoring the first fifty ever for the Asian side against the world champions.
But the spinner's mesmeric continuous 10-over bowling performance, in which she claimed 2-18 with four maidens, was crucial to ensuring the team's chase remained manageable.
The Captain Delighted with Victory that Seals Knockout Place
The Australian skipper was thrilled to learn that the victory, which puts her undefeated team top of the standings on nine points after four victories and a abandoned match, guarantees them a place in the last-four. “That's fantastic,” she exclaimed.
The 35-year-old captain sped to her century off just 73 deliveries, the quickest hundred of the tournament, and finished with 20 boundaries off the 77 balls she faced as she accelerated from Litchfield later in the innings after they had gone almost shot for shot towards their half-centuries.
The Opener Impresses with First Tournament Fifty
The young batter Litchfield struck 12 boundaries and one maximum, reaching to her maiden tournament half-century off 46 balls soon after Healy got there off 43 balls. They went on to achieve the third-highest partnership by any Australian duo at a Women’s World Cup.
Earlier, during the sluggish fielding display, the captain spilled the simplest of chances off a teammate and also failed to grasp a difficult lofted one off another bowler. Annoyingly, she also take a clean catch off Brown but didn’t have it reviewed when the umpire rejected their shout.
The recalled Darcie Brown sent down the fastest balls at the tournament so far but was still the team's costliest bowler, going for 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spinners Excel as Alana King Stars
Instead, the spinners excelled, spearheaded by Alana King, whose performance could have been even more productive if a fielder hadn’t dropped one in the slips.
Other spin bowlers Georgia Wareham (2-22 off seven overs) and 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 total to thirteen.
Rubya Haider’s 44 runs and Mostary’s unbeaten 66 off 80 deliveries took Bangladesh to their highest-ever score against the Australians, but the total was made to look easy meat by a side who had chased down 330 runs against India four days earlier.
“It's great when you’ve got the ‘Q’ next to your name in a global tournament,” said player-of-the-match King. “Certainly it won't end here. We anticipate returning to the next venue to face England and South Africa.”
