Alyssa Healy has executed outstanding consecutive centuries to lead her team into the last four of the World Cup, driving them to a merciless comprehensive trouncing over their opponents.
Healy remained not out on 113, arriving just four days after her similarly brilliant 142-run knock that saw off hosts India at the same Visakhapatnam venue. This time, she combined in an unbroken 200-run opening partnership with Phoebe Litchfield (84 not out) to race to their target of 199 runs in just under 25 deliveries.
“I thought I was a not at my best behind the stumps, and perhaps a bit as captain as well today, but we’ll take the win and progress,” she said.
Interestingly, the supreme professionalism of the day's run-chase as the duo put on 202 followed perhaps the team's shoddiest display in the field under Healy’s leadership, with the captain scolding herself in especial for dropping two of the half-dozen catches that went down.
“I felt somewhat let down with my glovework, and I needed to compensate with the bat, and fortunately succeeded,” she added.
Since statistics was initially recorded on fielding performance statistics in 2013, the six dropped opportunities marked the team's worst fielding showing at a World Cup tournament.
“Perhaps it’s just that time of the competition – we’ve been here a while, and it’s an issue we’ll review,” the captain said.
This allowed the opposition to eke out 198 for 9 after they had opted to bat first, their best-ever score in an ODI against the Aussies, with Sobhana Mostary compiling the maiden 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 key to making sure Australia’s target wasn’t too challenging.
Healy Delighted with Victory that Confirms Knockout Spot
The Australian skipper was delighted to learn that the victory, which places her unbeaten team at the top of the group table on nine points after four wins and a abandoned match, guarantees them a place in the last-four. “That's great news,” she said.
The experienced skipper sped to her hundred off just 73 balls, the quickest hundred of the World Cup, and ended with 20 fours off the 77 balls she faced as she accelerated from Litchfield in the latter stages in the innings after they had gone practically boundary-for-boundary towards their half-centuries.
The Opener Impresses with First World Cup Fifty
Left-hander Phoebe Litchfield hit 12 fours and one maximum, reaching to her first tournament half-century off 46 balls soon after her partner reached hers off 43 balls. They went on to achieve the third-best stand by any Aussie pair at a World Cup event.
In the first innings, during the sluggish fielding effort, the captain spilled the simplest of chances off Darcie Brown and also was unable to hold on to a difficult skied one off Annabel Sutherland. Annoyingly, she also take a clear chance off Brown but didn’t have it reviewed when the umpire turned down their shout.
The recalled Brown sent down the fastest balls at the World Cup so far but was still the Aussies’ costliest bowling option, conceding 0-52 off her nine overs.
Spinners Thrive as King Leads
Instead, the spinners excelled, led by Alana King, whose performance could have been even more productive if a fielder hadn’t missed one in the slip cordon.
Other spinners Georgia Wareham (2-22 off seven overs) and Gardner (2-48 off nine overs) both contributed, while Annabel Sutherland strengthened her position 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 off 80 deliveries took the team to their highest-ever total against the Australians, but the target was made to look straightforward by a team who had chased down 330 runs against India a few days earlier.
“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 anticipate returning to the next venue to take on England and the Proteas.”
