Alyssa Healy has delivered outstanding consecutive hundreds to lead her squad into the last four of the World Cup, motivating them to a commanding comprehensive victory over Bangladesh.
Healy finished unbeaten on 113 runs, arriving just four days after her similarly impressive 142 that saw off the Indian team at the same Visakhapatnam stadium. This time, she shared an unbroken 200-run opening partnership with Phoebe Litchfield (84 not out) to dash to their target of 199 in just 24.5 overs.
“I felt I was a below par with the gloves, and probably a bit as captain as well today, but we’ll accept the two points and move on,” she said.
Interestingly, the supreme expertise of the day's run-chase as the pair added 202 runs followed perhaps the team's poorest performance in the fielding department under the captain's leadership, with the skipper scolding herself in particular for dropping two of the six catches that were missed.
“I was a little bit disappointed with my wicketkeeping, and I had a little bit to make up for with the bat, and fortunately delivered,” Healy continued.
Since data was initially taken on fielding performance metrics in 2013, the six dropped opportunities represented the team's poorest fielding showing at a Women’s World Cup.
“Maybe it’s just that phase of the competition – we’ve been here a while, and it’s an issue we’ll reflect on,” Healy said.
This allowed the opposition to eke out 198 for 9 after they had opted to bat first, their highest score in an One-Day International against the Aussies, with Sobhana Mostary compiling the maiden fifty ever for the Bangladeshi team against the reigning champions.
But the spinner's spellbinding unbroken 10-over spell, in which she claimed two wickets for 18 runs with four maiden overs, was crucial to making sure the team's target wasn’t too challenging.
Healy Pleased with Victory that Confirms Knockout Place
Healy was thrilled to learn that the triumph, which places her undefeated side top of the standings on nine points after four wins and a wash-out, guarantees them a berth in the semi-finals. “That's fantastic,” she said.
The experienced skipper sped to her century off just 73 deliveries, the fastest century of the World Cup, and ended with 20 fours off the 77 deliveries she confronted as she pulled away from her partner in the latter stages in the knock after they had gone almost boundary-for-boundary towards their half-centuries.
Litchfield Shines with Maiden Tournament Half-Century
Left-hander Phoebe Litchfield hit 12 fours and one maximum, getting to her first World Cup half-century off 46 deliveries soon after Healy reached hers 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 display, Healy spilled the easiest of edges off a teammate and also was unable to hold on to a tough lofted one off another bowler. Frustratingly, she also did take a clean catch off Brown but didn’t have it reviewed when the official turned down their appeal.
The recalled Darcie Brown bowled the fastest balls at the tournament so far but was nonetheless the team's costliest bowling option, conceding 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spin Attack Thrive as King Leads
Instead, the slow bowlers thrived, spearheaded by King, whose spell could have been more successful if a fielder hadn’t missed one in the slip cordon.
Fellow spin bowlers Wareham (two for 22 off seven) and Ash Gardner (two for 48 off nine overs) both contributed, while Sutherland consolidated her position as the tournament’s top wicket-taker with her two for 41, bringing her total to 13.
Rubya Haider’s 44 runs and Mostary’s not out 66 off 80 balls took the team to their highest-ever score against the Aussies, but the target was rendered easy meat by a team who had chased down 330 against India a few days earlier.
“It's great when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a global tournament,” remarked star performer Alana King. “Certainly it won't end here. We anticipate going back to Indore to take on the English team and the Proteas.”
