Alyssa Healy Hammers a Second Century to Send Australia into Cricket World Cup Semi-Finals
Alyssa Healy has executed superb consecutive centuries to lead her squad into the last four of the Women's Cricket World Cup, inspiring them to a commanding 10-wicket trouncing over Bangladesh.
The wicketkeeper-batter finished not out on 113, arriving just a few days after her similarly stellar 142 that saw off the Indian team at the same Visakhapatnam venue. This time, she combined in an unbroken 200-run opening partnership with Phoebe Litchfield (84 not out) to chase to their target of 199 in just 24.5 overs.
“I felt I was a below par with the gloves, and probably a little bit as captain as well today, but we’ll accept the win and move on,” she said.
Ironically, the supreme professionalism of Thursday’s chase as the pair added 202 runs followed perhaps Australia’s shoddiest display in the field under Healy’s leadership, with the captain criticizing herself in especial for dropping two of the six chances that were missed.
“I felt somewhat let down with my glovework, and I needed to compensate with the batting, and luckily succeeded,” she added.
From the time data was initially recorded on fielding statistics in the year 2013, the half-dozen dropped opportunities marked the team's worst fielding showing at a World Cup tournament.
“Perhaps it’s just that phase of the competition – we’ve been here a little while, and it’s something we’ll review,” the captain said.
It helped the opposition to manage 9-198 after they had opted to bat, their highest total in an One-Day International against the Aussies, with a key batter scoring the maiden half-century ever for the Bangladeshi team against the world champions.
But Alana King mesmeric continuous ten-over spell, in which she took 2-18 with four maidens, was crucial to making sure Australia’s chase wasn’t too challenging.
The Captain Pleased with Win that Seals Knockout Spot
The Australian skipper was pleased to learn that the victory, which places her undefeated side at the top of the group table on nine points after four victories and a abandoned match, secures them a place in the last-four. “That's fantastic,” she said.
The experienced skipper sped to her century off just 73 deliveries, the fastest hundred of the tournament, and ended with 20 fours off the 77 deliveries she faced as she accelerated from Litchfield later in the innings after they had gone practically shot for shot towards their fifties.
Litchfield Impresses with Maiden Tournament Fifty
Left-hander Litchfield struck 12 fours and one maximum, reaching to her maiden tournament fifty off 46 balls shortly after her partner reached hers off 43 balls. They went on to record the third-best stand by any Australian duo at a Women’s World Cup.
In the first innings, during the sluggish fielding display, the captain spilled the simplest of chances off a teammate and also failed to grasp a tough lofted one off another bowler. Frustratingly, she also did take a clean chance off the same bowler but didn’t have it reviewed when the official turned down their appeal.
The recalled Brown sent down the fastest deliveries at the tournament so far but was still the team's most expensive bowler, going for 0-52 off her nine overs.
Spinners Thrive as Alana King Leads
Instead, the spinners thrived, spearheaded by King, whose spell could have been more successful if Beth Mooney hadn’t dropped one in the slip cordon.
Other spin bowlers Georgia Wareham (2-22 off seven overs) and Gardner (2-48 off nine overs) both chipped in, while Sutherland strengthened her position as the competition's top wicket-taker with her two for 41, bringing her tally to 13.
A batter's 44 and another's not out 66 off 80 deliveries took the team to their highest-ever total against the Australians, but the total was rendered straightforward by a team who had chased down 330 against the Indian side a few days earlier.
“It's fantastic when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a World Cup,” remarked star performer King. “Certainly it doesn’t stop here. We anticipate going back to the next venue to face the English team and South Africa.”