Alyssa Healy has produced superb consecutive hundreds to steer her team into the last four of the World Cup, driving them to a commanding comprehensive win over their opponents.
Healy finished not out on 113 runs, coming just a few days after her similarly stellar 142 that saw off the Indian team at the same Vizag stadium. This time, she shared an undefeated double-century opening partnership with Phoebe Litchfield (84 not out) to dash to their target of 199 in just under 25 deliveries.
“I thought I was a little bit poor with the gloves, and perhaps a little bit as skipper as well today, but we’ll accept the two points and move on,” she said.
Ironically, the utmost expertise of Thursday’s chase as the pair added 202 runs followed perhaps the team's weakest performance in the field under Healy’s stewardship, with the captain criticizing herself in particular for dropping two of the six chances that went down.
“I was a little bit disappointed with my wicketkeeping, and I needed to compensate with the batting, and luckily got the job done,” she added.
From the time data was first taken on fielding performance metrics in the year 2013, the six missed opportunities represented Australia’s poorest fielding display at a World Cup tournament.
“Maybe it’s just that time of the competition – we’ve been here a little while, and it’s an issue we’ll analyze,” Healy commented.
It helped the opposition to manage 198 for 9 after they had chosen to bat first, their best-ever score in an ODI against Australia, with a key batter compiling the maiden fifty ever for the Bangladeshi team against the reigning champions.
But Alana King spellbinding continuous ten-over spell, in which she claimed 2-18 with four maiden overs, was vital to making sure the team's chase wasn’t too challenging.
The Captain Pleased with Win that Confirms Semi-Final Spot
Healy was pleased to learn that the triumph, which puts her undefeated team at the top of the standings on nine points after four victories and a wash-out, guarantees them a place in the last-four. “That's fantastic,” she said.
The 35-year-old captain raced to her hundred off just 73 deliveries, the quickest century of the tournament, and finished with 20 boundaries off the 77 deliveries she faced as she accelerated from her partner in the latter stages in the innings after they had gone almost shot for shot towards their fifties.
Litchfield Shines with Maiden Tournament Half-Century
Left-hander Litchfield struck 12 fours and one maximum, getting to her maiden World Cup fifty off 46 deliveries soon after Healy reached hers off 43 balls. They went on to achieve the third-highest partnership by any Australian pair at a Women’s World Cup.
In the first innings, during the subpar fielding display, Healy spilled the easiest of edges off a teammate and also failed to grasp a tough lofted one off Annabel Sutherland. Annoyingly, she also did take a clear chance off the same bowler but didn’t have it reviewed when the official rejected their appeal.
The reinstated Brown sent down the fastest balls at the World Cup so far but was still the team's costliest bowling option, going for 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spin Attack Excel as Alana King Stars
Instead, the spinners thrived, led by King, whose spell could have been even more productive if Beth Mooney hadn’t missed one in the slips.
Other spin bowlers Georgia Wareham (two for 22 off seven overs) and Gardner (2-48 off nine) both contributed, while Annabel Sutherland consolidated her standing as the competition's leading wicket-taker with her two for 41, bringing her total to thirteen.
Rubya Haider’s 44 and another's not out 66 off 80 balls took the team to their highest-ever score against the Aussies, but the total was rendered straightforward by a team who had chased down 330 runs against the Indian side four days before.
“It's great when you’ve got the ‘Q’ next to your name in a World Cup,” remarked star performer King. “Certainly it doesn’t stop here. We anticipate going back to Indore to take on the English team and South Africa.”
