Alyssa Healy Fires a Second Hundred to Send Australia into World Cup Semi-Finals
The Australian skipper has produced outstanding back-to-back hundreds to guide her squad into the semi-finals of the Women's Cricket World Cup, motivating them to a merciless comprehensive trouncing over Bangladesh.
Healy finished not out on 113, arriving just four days after her similarly impressive 142-run knock that saw off the Indian team at the same Visakhapatnam venue. This time, she shared an unbroken double-century first-wicket stand with Phoebe Litchfield (84no) to race to their target of 199 runs in just 24.5 overs.
“I thought I was a little bit poor with the gloves, and probably a bit as skipper as well today, but we’ll accept the win and move on,” she said.
Interestingly, the supreme professionalism of the day's run-chase as the duo put on 202 runs came after possibly Australia’s poorest performance in the fielding department under the captain's leadership, with the captain criticizing herself in especial for spilling a couple of the half-dozen catches 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 got the job done,” she added.
From the time data was first taken on fielding statistics in the year 2013, the half-dozen missed catches represented the team's poorest fielding display at a Women’s World Cup.
“Maybe it’s just that phase of the competition – we’ve been here a while, and it’s an issue we’ll analyze,” the captain commented.
It helped the opposition to manage 198 for 9 after they had opted to bat first, their highest total in an ODI against the Aussies, with Sobhana Mostary scoring the first fifty ever for the Bangladeshi team against the world champions.
But Alana King spellbinding continuous ten-over bowling performance, in which she took 2-18 with four maiden overs, was vital to making sure the team's chase wasn’t too challenging.
Healy Pleased with Win that Seals Semi-Final Place
Healy was pleased to learn that the victory, which puts her undefeated team top of the standings on nine points after four wins and a abandoned match, guarantees them a place in the last-four. “That's great news,” she exclaimed.
The 35-year-old captain raced to her century off just 73 deliveries, the quickest hundred of the tournament, and finished with 20 fours off the 77 balls she confronted as she pulled away from her partner in the latter stages in the innings after they had gone almost shot for shot towards their half-centuries.
The Opener Shines with First Tournament Half-Century
Left-hander Litchfield hit 12 fours and a six, reaching to her maiden tournament half-century off 46 deliveries soon after Healy got there off 43 balls. They went on to achieve the third-highest stand by any Aussie pair at a World Cup event.
Earlier, during the sluggish fielding display, the captain dropped the easiest of edges off Darcie Brown and also failed to hold on to a tough skied one off Annabel Sutherland. Annoyingly, she also take a clean chance off the same bowler but failed to review when the official rejected their shout.
The reinstated Darcie 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 Alana King Leads
In contrast, the slow bowlers excelled, led by Alana King, whose spell could have been even more productive if Beth Mooney hadn’t dropped one in the slip cordon.
Other spinners Georgia Wareham (two for 22 off seven overs) and Ash Gardner (two for 48 off nine) both chipped in, while Annabel Sutherland strengthened her position as the tournament’s top wicket-taker with her two for 41, taking her total to thirteen.
Rubya Haider’s 44 runs and another's unbeaten 66 runs 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 team who had chased down 330 runs against India four days before.
“It’s always nice when you’ve got the ‘Q’ next to your name in a World Cup,” remarked star performer King. “No doubt it doesn’t stop here. We anticipate going back to the next venue to face the English team and South Africa.”