Alyssa Healy Fires Another Century to Power Australia into World Cup Knockout Stage
The Australian skipper has delivered brilliant back-to-back hundreds to guide her squad into the last four of the World Cup, motivating them to a dominant comprehensive win over Bangladesh.
The wicketkeeper-batter finished unbeaten on 113, coming just four days after her similarly impressive 142 that saw off the Indian team at the same Vizag venue. This time, she shared an undefeated 200-run opening partnership with her opening partner (84no) to chase to their goal of 199 in just under 25 deliveries.
“I felt I was a not at my best behind the stumps, and probably a bit as skipper as well tonight, but we’ll accept the two points and progress,” she said.
Interestingly, the supreme professionalism of the day's chase as the pair added 202 runs came after possibly Australia’s shoddiest performance in the field under the captain's stewardship, with the captain criticizing herself in especial for dropping a couple of the six catches that were missed.
“I felt somewhat let down with my glovework, and I had a little bit to make up for with the batting, and luckily delivered,” she added.
From the time statistics was initially taken on fielding statistics in 2013, the six missed catches marked 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 review,” Healy said.
This allowed the opposition to eke out 9-198 after they had opted to bat, their highest score in an One-Day International against the Aussies, with Sobhana Mostary scoring the first fifty ever for the Bangladeshi team against the reigning champions.
But the spinner's spellbinding continuous ten-over spell, in which she claimed 2-18 with four maidens, was key to making sure the team's chase remained manageable.
Healy Delighted with Win that Seals Semi-Final Place
Healy was delighted to learn that the victory, which places her undefeated side 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 really cool,” she said.
The experienced skipper raced to her century off just 73 balls, the quickest century of the tournament, and ended with 20 fours off the 77 balls she confronted as she pulled away from Litchfield later in the knock after they had gone almost shot for shot towards their fifties.
Litchfield Shines with First World Cup Half-Century
The young batter Phoebe Litchfield struck 12 boundaries and one maximum, getting to her first tournament half-century off 46 deliveries shortly after Healy got there off 43. They went on to record the third-highest partnership by any Aussie pair at a World Cup event.
In the first innings, during the sluggish fielding display, the captain dropped the easiest of edges off Darcie Brown and also was unable to hold on to a difficult lofted one off another bowler. Annoyingly, she also did take a clean chance off Brown but didn’t have it reviewed when the umpire rejected their appeal.
The recalled Brown bowled the fastest balls at the World Cup so far but was nonetheless the team's costliest bowler, going for 0-52 off her nine overs.
Spin Attack Thrive as King Stars
Instead, the spinners thrived, spearheaded by King, whose performance could have been even more productive if a fielder hadn’t missed one in the slips.
Other spinners Wareham (two for 22 off seven) and Ash Gardner (2-48 off nine) both chipped in, while Annabel Sutherland strengthened her position as the competition's top wicket-taker with her 2-41, taking her tally to 13.
Rubya Haider’s 44 runs and another's unbeaten 66 off 80 deliveries took Bangladesh to their record total against the Australians, but the total was made to look easy meat by a team who had chased down 330 runs against India a few days before.
“It's great when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a World Cup,” said star performer King. “No doubt it doesn’t stop here. We anticipate returning to the next venue to take on the English team and the Proteas.”