Healy Blasts Another Century to Send the Australian Team into Cricket World Cup Semi-Finals
Alyssa Healy has delivered brilliant back-to-back hundreds to lead her squad into the last four of the World Cup, driving them to a dominant comprehensive victory over their opponents.
Healy remained unbeaten on 113 runs, coming just a few days after her similarly impressive 142-run knock that defeated the Indian team at the same Visakhapatnam venue. This time, she combined in an unbroken double-century opening partnership with Phoebe Litchfield (84no) to chase to their goal of 199 runs in just under 25 deliveries.
“I felt I was a below par behind the stumps, and probably a bit as captain as well tonight, but we’ll take the win and progress,” Healy remarked.
Ironically, the supreme expertise of Thursday’s chase as the duo put on 202 runs came after possibly the team's shoddiest performance in the fielding department under the captain's stewardship, with the captain criticizing herself in especial for spilling two of the six chances that were missed.
“I felt somewhat let down with my glovework, and I needed to compensate with the bat, and fortunately delivered,” Healy continued.
Since statistics was first recorded on fielding statistics in 2013, the half-dozen missed catches represented the team's poorest fielding display at a World Cup tournament.
“Perhaps it’s just that time of the competition – we’ve been here a while, and it’s something we’ll analyze,” the captain said.
This allowed the opposition to eke out 9-198 after they had chosen to bat first, their highest score in an ODI against Australia, with a key batter scoring the first half-century ever for the Asian side against the reigning champions.
But Alana King mesmeric continuous ten-over bowling performance, in which she claimed 2-18 with four maidens, was vital to making sure Australia’s target wasn’t too challenging.
Healy Delighted with Victory that Seals Semi-Final Place
The Australian skipper was pleased to learn that the triumph, which puts her undefeated side at the top of the standings on nine points after four victories and a abandoned match, guarantees them a berth in the last-four. “That’s really cool,” she said.
The 35-year-old skipper sped to her century off just 73 balls, the fastest century of the tournament, and finished with 20 boundaries off the 77 deliveries she faced as she pulled away from her partner later in the innings after they had gone practically shot for shot towards their half-centuries.
Litchfield Shines with First Tournament Fifty
Left-hander Litchfield struck 12 fours and one maximum, getting to her first tournament fifty off 46 balls soon after Healy got there off 43. They went on to record the third-best partnership by any Aussie pair at a Women’s World Cup.
Earlier, during the subpar fielding display, the captain dropped the easiest of edges off a teammate and also failed to grasp a difficult skied one off Annabel Sutherland. Annoyingly, she also take a clear catch off Brown but didn’t have it reviewed when the umpire rejected their appeal.
The recalled Brown bowled the quickest deliveries at the World Cup so far but was still the team's most expensive bowler, going for 0-52 off her nine overs.
Spinners Excel as Alana King Stars
Instead, the spinners thrived, led by Alana King, whose performance could have been even more productive if a fielder hadn’t missed one in the slips.
Other spin bowlers Wareham (two for 22 off seven overs) and Ash Gardner (two for 48 off nine) both chipped in, while Sutherland consolidated her standing as the tournament’s top wicket-taker with her 2-41, taking her tally to 13.
Rubya Haider’s 44 and Mostary’s unbeaten 66 runs off 80 deliveries took Bangladesh to their record total against the Australians, but the total was made to look straightforward by a side who had successfully pursued 330 against India four days before.
“It’s always nice when you’ve got the ‘Q’ next to your name in a World Cup,” remarked player-of-the-match King. “Certainly it doesn’t stop here. We look forward to returning to the next venue to take on England and the Proteas.”