Alyssa Healy has executed outstanding consecutive hundreds to guide her squad into the last four of the Women's Cricket World Cup, motivating them to a dominant 10-wicket victory over their opponents.
Healy finished not out on 113, coming just four days after her equally stellar 142-run knock that saw off the Indian team at the identical Vizag stadium. This time, she shared an unbroken double-century opening partnership with Phoebe Litchfield (84no) to race to their goal of 199 runs in just 24.5 overs.
“I felt I was a below par behind the stumps, and perhaps a little bit as captain as well today, but we’ll take the two points and move on,” she said.
Interestingly, the supreme expertise of the day's run-chase as the duo added 202 runs followed perhaps Australia’s shoddiest display in the field under the captain's stewardship, with the skipper criticizing herself in particular for dropping two 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 bat, and fortunately delivered,” she added.
Since statistics was first recorded on fielding performance metrics in 2013, the half-dozen missed catches represented the team's worst fielding showing at a Women’s World Cup.
“Maybe it’s just that phase of the competition – we’ve been here a little while, and it’s an issue we’ll review,” the captain said.
This allowed the opposition to manage 9-198 after they had chosen to bat first, their highest total in an ODI against the Aussies, with a key batter scoring the first fifty ever for the Bangladeshi team against the world champions.
But Alana King spellbinding continuous 10-over bowling performance, in which she took 2-18 with four maiden overs, was key to ensuring Australia’s chase wasn’t too challenging.
Healy Pleased with Victory that Confirms Knockout Place
The Australian skipper was delighted to learn that the triumph, which puts her unbeaten side at the top of the group table on nine points after four victories and a abandoned match, guarantees them a berth in the last-four. “That’s really cool,” she exclaimed.
The experienced skipper sped to her hundred off just 73 balls, the fastest hundred of the World Cup, and finished with 20 boundaries off the 77 balls she faced as she pulled away from Litchfield later in the knock after they had gone almost boundary-for-boundary towards their fifties.
Litchfield Shines with Maiden World Cup Fifty
Left-hander Litchfield struck 12 fours and a six, getting to her first World Cup half-century off 46 balls shortly after Healy got there off 43. They went on to record the third-best partnership by any Australian duo at a Women’s World Cup.
In the first innings, during the subpar fielding effort, the captain dropped the easiest of edges off Darcie Brown and also failed to hold on to a tough lofted one off another bowler. Frustratingly, she also take a clear catch off Brown but failed to review when the umpire rejected their appeal.
The recalled Brown sent down the quickest deliveries at the tournament so far but was still the Aussies’ most expensive bowling option, going for 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spinners Thrive as Alana King Leads
Instead, the slow bowlers excelled, spearheaded 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 (2-22 off seven overs) and Ash Gardner (two for 48 off nine overs) both chipped in, while Sutherland consolidated her position as the tournament’s top wicket-taker with her 2-41, taking her total to thirteen.
Rubya Haider’s 44 runs and another's unbeaten 66 off 80 balls took the team to their record score against the Australians, but the total was rendered straightforward by a side who had chased down 330 against India a few days before.
“It's great when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a World Cup,” remarked star performer King. “No doubt it won't end here. We look forward to going back to the next venue to take on England and the Proteas.”
