Alyssa Healy has delivered outstanding consecutive centuries to lead her team into the last four of the Women's Cricket World Cup, motivating them to a dominant 10-wicket win over their opponents.
The wicketkeeper-batter remained unbeaten on 113 runs, arriving just a few days after her equally brilliant 142 that defeated hosts India at the identical Visakhapatnam stadium. This time, she combined in an unbroken double-century first-wicket stand with her opening partner (84no) to chase to their goal of 199 in just 24.5 overs.
“I felt I was a not at my best with the gloves, and perhaps a little bit as skipper as well tonight, but we’ll take the win and move on,” Healy remarked.
Ironically, the supreme professionalism of the day's chase as the duo added 202 runs came after perhaps the team's shoddiest performance in the field under the captain's stewardship, 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 wicketkeeping, and I needed to compensate with the batting, and fortunately got the job done,” Healy continued.
Since data was first taken on fielding performance statistics in the year 2013, the six dropped catches marked the team's poorest fielding display at a Women’s World Cup.
“Maybe it’s just that time of the tournament – we’ve been here a little while, and it’s an issue we’ll reflect on,” the captain commented.
This allowed the opposition to eke out 198 for 9 after they had opted to bat, their best-ever score in an ODI against Australia, with Sobhana Mostary compiling the maiden fifty ever for the Asian side 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 key to ensuring the team's target wasn’t too challenging.
The Captain Pleased with Win that Seals Semi-Final Place
Healy was delighted to learn that the triumph, which puts her unbeaten side top of the group table on nine points after four victories and a abandoned match, secures them a place in the semi-finals. “That's fantastic,” she exclaimed.
The 35-year-old skipper sped to her century off just 73 balls, the fastest hundred of the World Cup, and finished with 20 fours off the 77 deliveries she faced as she accelerated from Litchfield in the latter stages in the innings after they had gone almost shot for shot towards their fifties.
The Opener Impresses with Maiden World Cup Fifty
Left-hander Phoebe Litchfield hit 12 fours and a six, reaching to her maiden World Cup half-century off 46 deliveries soon after her partner got there off 43. They went on to achieve the third-best stand by any Aussie duo at a Women’s World Cup.
In the first innings, during the sluggish fielding effort, Healy spilled the simplest of edges off Darcie Brown and also was unable to hold on to a difficult skied one off another bowler. Annoyingly, she also take a clear chance off Brown but failed to review when the official rejected their appeal.
The reinstated Brown bowled the quickest deliveries at the tournament so far but was still the team's most expensive bowler, going for 0-52 off her nine overs.
Spinners Thrive as Alana King Stars
Instead, the spinners excelled, led by King, whose spell could have been even more productive if Beth Mooney hadn’t missed one in the slip cordon.
Fellow spin bowlers Wareham (two for 22 off seven overs) and Ash Gardner (two for 48 off nine) both chipped in, while Sutherland consolidated her standing as the tournament’s top wicket-taker with her two for 41, bringing her total to thirteen.
A batter's 44 and another's not out 66 off 80 deliveries took Bangladesh to their highest-ever score against the Aussies, but the total was made to look easy meat by a team who had chased down 330 runs against India four days earlier.
“It's fantastic when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a global tournament,” remarked player-of-the-match Alana King. “No doubt it doesn’t stop here. We anticipate going back to the next venue to face the English team and the Proteas.”
