Alyssa Healy has executed superb consecutive centuries to lead her team into the last four of the Women's Cricket World Cup, driving them to a commanding 10-wicket win over their opponents.
Healy finished unbeaten on 113, arriving just a few days after her equally stellar 142 that defeated the Indian team at the identical Vizag stadium. This time, she shared an undefeated double-century opening partnership with her opening partner (84 not out) to dash to their target of 199 in just 24.5 overs.
“I felt I was a little bit poor with the gloves, and probably a little bit as captain as well today, but we’ll take the two points and move on,” she said.
Ironically, the supreme professionalism of the day's chase as the duo put on 202 came after possibly the team's poorest performance in the field under the captain's leadership, with the skipper scolding herself in especial for dropping a couple of the half-dozen catches that went down.
“I was a little bit disappointed with my glovework, and I had a little bit to make up for with the batting, and fortunately succeeded,” Healy continued.
From the time data was first taken on fielding metrics in 2013, the six missed catches represented Australia’s poorest fielding showing at a Women’s World Cup.
“Perhaps it’s just that phase of the competition – we’ve been here a while, and it’s something we’ll review,” Healy commented.
It helped the opposition to manage 198 for 9 after they had chosen to bat, their best-ever score in an ODI against the Aussies, with Sobhana Mostary compiling the first fifty ever for the Bangladeshi team against the world champions.
But the spinner's spellbinding unbroken ten-over bowling performance, in which she claimed 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 Seals Semi-Final Place
Healy was thrilled to learn that the victory, which places her unbeaten side at the top of the standings on nine points after four wins and a wash-out, guarantees them a place in the last-four. “That's great news,” she said.
The experienced skipper raced to her hundred off just 73 balls, the quickest hundred of the tournament, and ended with 20 boundaries off the 77 balls she faced as she accelerated from her partner later in the innings after they had gone almost shot for shot towards their half-centuries.
The Opener Shines with Maiden World Cup Half-Century
The young batter Litchfield hit 12 fours and one maximum, reaching to her first tournament fifty off 46 balls soon after her partner got there off 43 balls. They went on to record the third-highest partnership by any Australian pair at a World Cup event.
Earlier, during the sluggish fielding display, the captain spilled the simplest of chances off Darcie Brown and also was unable to grasp a tough lofted one off Annabel Sutherland. Annoyingly, she also take a clean catch off Brown but failed to review when the official turned down their appeal.
The reinstated Darcie Brown bowled the quickest deliveries at the tournament so far but was still the Aussies’ most expensive bowler, going for 0-52 off her nine overs.
Spin Attack Excel as Alana King Leads
In contrast, the slow bowlers excelled, led by Alana King, whose performance could have been even more productive if a fielder hadn’t dropped one in the slips.
Fellow spinners Wareham (2-22 off seven) and Gardner (2-48 off nine overs) both contributed, while Annabel Sutherland consolidated her standing as the tournament’s leading wicket-taker with her 2-41, bringing her tally to thirteen.
Rubya Haider’s 44 runs and another's unbeaten 66 runs off 80 deliveries took the team to their highest-ever total against the Aussies, but the target was made to look straightforward by a side who had chased down 330 runs against the Indian side four days before.
“It’s always nice when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a global tournament,” said player-of-the-match King. “No doubt it won't end here. We look forward to returning to Indore to take on the English team and South Africa.”
