Alyssa Healy has delivered superb consecutive centuries to guide her squad into the last four of the World Cup, driving them to a commanding 10-wicket win over their opponents.
Healy finished unbeaten on 113, arriving just four days after her equally brilliant 142-run knock that saw off the Indian team at the same Vizag venue. This time, she shared an unbroken 200-run opening partnership with Phoebe Litchfield (84no) to chase to their target of 199 in just under 25 deliveries.
“I felt I was a below par with the gloves, and perhaps a bit as captain as well today, but we’ll take the win and progress,” she said.
Ironically, the supreme expertise of Thursday’s run-chase as the duo put on 202 came after perhaps Australia’s poorest performance in the field under Healy’s stewardship, with the skipper criticizing herself in especial for spilling a couple of the half-dozen chances 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,” Healy continued.
From the time data was initially taken on fielding performance metrics in the year 2013, the six dropped opportunities represented the team's poorest fielding showing at a Women’s World Cup.
“Perhaps it’s just that phase of the tournament – we’ve been here a little while, and it’s an issue we’ll analyze,” the captain commented.
It helped Bangladesh to manage 9-198 after they had chosen to bat, their highest total in an ODI against Australia, with a key batter compiling the maiden fifty ever for the Bangladeshi team against the reigning champions.
But the spinner's mesmeric unbroken ten-over spell, in which she took two wickets for 18 runs with four maiden overs, was crucial to ensuring Australia’s target remained manageable.
Healy Pleased with Victory that Confirms Knockout Spot
Healy was pleased to learn that the triumph, which places 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 semi-finals. “That's fantastic,” she exclaimed.
The experienced captain sped to her hundred off just 73 deliveries, the quickest century of the World Cup, and finished with 20 boundaries off the 77 balls she faced as she accelerated from her partner later in the innings after they had gone almost boundary-for-boundary towards their fifties.
The Opener Shines with First Tournament Fifty
The young batter Litchfield hit 12 boundaries and one maximum, reaching to her first World Cup fifty off 46 deliveries soon after her partner got there off 43 balls. They went on to achieve the third-best partnership by any Aussie pair at a World Cup event.
Earlier, during the subpar fielding display, Healy dropped the easiest of edges off Darcie Brown and also failed to hold on to a difficult skied one off another bowler. Annoyingly, she also take a clean catch off Brown but failed to review when the official rejected their appeal.
The reinstated Brown sent down the fastest balls at the World Cup so far but was nonetheless the team's costliest bowling option, going for 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spin Attack Thrive as Alana King Stars
In contrast, the spinners excelled, spearheaded by Alana King, whose performance could have been even more productive if a fielder hadn’t missed one in the slips.
Fellow spin bowlers Georgia Wareham (2-22 off seven) and Gardner (two for 48 off nine) both chipped in, while Annabel Sutherland consolidated her position as the tournament’s top wicket-taker with her 2-41, taking her tally to 13.
Rubya Haider’s 44 runs and another's not out 66 runs off 80 deliveries took Bangladesh to their highest-ever score against the Aussies, but the target was made to look easy meat by a side who had chased down 330 against the Indian side four days earlier.
“It’s always nice when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a global tournament,” remarked player-of-the-match Alana King. “Certainly it won't end here. We anticipate returning to Indore to face England and the Proteas.”
