Alyssa Healy Fires a Second Century to Send Australia into World Cup Knockout Stage
The Australian skipper has delivered superb consecutive hundreds to guide her team into the last four of the Women's Cricket World Cup, motivating them to a merciless comprehensive trouncing over Bangladesh.
The wicketkeeper-batter finished unbeaten on 113 runs, arriving just four days after her equally stellar 142 that saw off the Indian team at the identical Vizag stadium. This time, she shared an unbroken double-century first-wicket stand with Phoebe Litchfield (84 not out) to chase to their target of 199 in just under 25 deliveries.
“I felt I was a below par with the gloves, and probably a bit as captain as well today, but we’ll take the win and move on,” Healy remarked.
Interestingly, the supreme expertise of Thursday’s run-chase as the duo added 202 runs came after possibly Australia’s shoddiest performance in the fielding department under the captain's stewardship, with the captain criticizing herself in especial for dropping two of the six chances that went down.
“I was a little bit disappointed with my wicketkeeping, and I had a little bit to make up for with the batting, and luckily delivered,” she added.
From the time statistics was initially recorded on fielding performance metrics in the year 2013, the six missed catches marked the team's poorest fielding showing at a Women’s World Cup.
“Maybe it’s just that time of the competition – we’ve been here a little while, and it’s an issue we’ll review,” Healy commented.
It helped Bangladesh to eke out 198 for 9 after they had chosen to bat, their best-ever score in an ODI against the Aussies, with a key batter scoring the maiden half-century ever for the Asian side against the world champions.
But the spinner's spellbinding unbroken ten-over bowling performance, in which she took 2-18 with four maidens, was crucial to making sure the team's target wasn’t too challenging.
Healy Delighted with Win that Seals Semi-Final Place
The Australian skipper was pleased to discover 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 last-four. “That's great news,” she said.
The experienced captain raced to her century off just 73 balls, the quickest century of the tournament, and finished 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 almost boundary-for-boundary towards their half-centuries.
The Opener Shines with Maiden Tournament Fifty
The young batter Phoebe Litchfield struck 12 fours and a six, getting to her first World Cup half-century off 46 deliveries shortly after her partner reached hers off 43 balls. They went on to achieve the third-best partnership by any Australian duo at a World Cup event.
In the first innings, during the sluggish fielding display, the captain dropped the simplest of chances off Darcie Brown and also was unable to hold on to a tough skied one off Annabel Sutherland. Annoyingly, she also take a clean chance off Brown but didn’t have it reviewed when the umpire rejected their appeal.
The recalled Darcie 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 Leads
Instead, the spinners excelled, led by King, whose spell could have been more successful if Beth Mooney hadn’t dropped one in the slips.
Other spinners Georgia Wareham (2-22 off seven overs) and Gardner (2-48 off nine overs) both contributed, while Sutherland consolidated her standing as the competition's leading wicket-taker with her 2-41, taking her tally to thirteen.
A batter's 44 runs and Mostary’s unbeaten 66 off 80 deliveries took Bangladesh to their record score against the Australians, but the total was made to look straightforward by a side who had successfully pursued 330 runs against the Indian side four days before.
“It’s always nice when you’ve got the ‘Q’ next to your name in a World Cup,” said star performer King. “Certainly it won't end here. We look forward to going back to Indore to face England and the Proteas.”