Alyssa Healy has produced superb back-to-back hundreds to lead her team into the semi-finals of the World Cup, driving them to a commanding 10-wicket win over their opponents.
The wicketkeeper-batter finished unbeaten on 113 runs, coming just a few days after her similarly stellar 142 that defeated the Indian team at the same Vizag stadium. This time, she combined in an unbroken 200-run first-wicket stand with her opening partner (84no) to dash to their goal of 199 runs in just under 25 deliveries.
“I felt I was a below par with the gloves, and probably a little bit as skipper as well tonight, but we’ll accept the two points and move on,” Healy remarked.
Ironically, the utmost professionalism of the day's run-chase as the duo put on 202 runs came after possibly the team's shoddiest display in the fielding department under Healy’s stewardship, with the skipper scolding herself in especial for spilling a couple of the six catches that went down.
“I felt somewhat let down with my glovework, and I had a little bit to make up for with the batting, and luckily succeeded,” Healy continued.
From the time statistics was first recorded on fielding performance metrics in 2013, the half-dozen missed catches marked Australia’s poorest fielding display at a Women’s World Cup.
“Perhaps it’s just that phase of the competition – we’ve been here a little while, and it’s an issue we’ll analyze,” the captain said.
It helped the opposition to manage 9-198 after they had chosen to bat, their best-ever score in an One-Day International against the Aussies, with Sobhana Mostary scoring the maiden fifty ever for the Bangladeshi team against the world champions.
But Alana King mesmeric continuous 10-over bowling performance, in which she claimed 2-18 with four maiden overs, was vital to ensuring 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 puts her undefeated side at the top of the group table on nine points after four wins and a wash-out, secures them a berth in the semi-finals. “That’s really cool,” she exclaimed.
The experienced captain sped to her century off just 73 deliveries, the quickest century of the tournament, and finished with 20 boundaries off the 77 balls she confronted as she accelerated from her partner in the latter stages in the knock after they had gone almost shot for shot towards their fifties.
The Opener Shines with Maiden World Cup Fifty
The young batter Phoebe Litchfield struck 12 boundaries and one maximum, getting to her first World Cup fifty off 46 deliveries soon after her partner got there off 43 balls. They went on to record the third-best stand by any Aussie pair at a Women’s World Cup.
In the first innings, during the subpar fielding display, the captain spilled the simplest of chances off a teammate and also failed to hold on to a tough skied one off another bowler. Frustratingly, she also did take a clean chance off Brown but didn’t have it reviewed when the umpire rejected their appeal.
The reinstated Brown sent down the quickest deliveries at the World Cup so far but was nonetheless the team's most expensive bowling option, conceding 0-52 off her nine overs.
Spinners Excel as King Leads
Instead, the slow bowlers excelled, led by Alana King, whose performance could have been even more productive if Beth Mooney hadn’t dropped one in the slip cordon.
Fellow spin bowlers Wareham (2-22 off seven) and Ash Gardner (2-48 off nine) both contributed, while Annabel Sutherland strengthened her position as the tournament’s top wicket-taker with her 2-41, taking her total to thirteen.
Rubya Haider’s 44 runs and Mostary’s not out 66 off 80 balls took the team to their highest-ever score against the Australians, but the target was made to look easy meat by a side who had successfully pursued 330 runs against the Indian side a few days before.
“It’s always nice when you’ve got the ‘Q’ next to your name in a World Cup,” said player-of-the-match Alana King. “Certainly it won't end here. We look forward to returning to Indore to face England and the Proteas.”
