Alyssa Healy has produced brilliant back-to-back centuries to steer her squad into the last four of the Women's Cricket World Cup, inspiring them to a dominant 10-wicket win over their opponents.
Healy remained not out on 113 runs, coming just four days after her similarly impressive 142-run knock that saw off hosts India at the identical Visakhapatnam venue. This time, she combined in an unbroken double-century opening partnership with her opening partner (84no) to race to their target of 199 runs in just under 25 deliveries.
“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 two points and progress,” Healy remarked.
Ironically, the utmost expertise of the day's chase as the pair put on 202 came after perhaps the team's shoddiest display in the fielding department under Healy’s leadership, with the captain criticizing herself in especial for spilling two of the half-dozen catches that were missed.
“I felt somewhat let down with my wicketkeeping, and I needed to compensate with the batting, and fortunately succeeded,” Healy continued.
Since statistics was initially recorded on fielding statistics in 2013, the six dropped catches represented 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.
This allowed the opposition to manage 198 for 9 after they had chosen to bat first, their best-ever total in an ODI against the Aussies, with a key batter scoring the maiden fifty ever for the Asian side against the reigning champions.
But Alana King mesmeric unbroken ten-over spell, in which she claimed two wickets for 18 runs with four maidens, was crucial to ensuring Australia’s target remained manageable.
The Captain Delighted with Victory that Confirms Semi-Final Place
Healy was delighted to discover that the triumph, which places her undefeated side at the top of the group table on nine points after four wins and a abandoned match, secures them a berth in the semi-finals. “That’s really cool,” she said.
The experienced captain 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 pulled away from Litchfield later in the innings after they had gone practically boundary-for-boundary towards their half-centuries.
Litchfield Shines with Maiden Tournament Fifty
Left-hander Phoebe Litchfield struck 12 boundaries and a six, getting to her first World Cup half-century off 46 deliveries shortly after Healy got there off 43 balls. They went on to achieve the third-highest partnership by any Australian duo at a World Cup event.
Earlier, during the sluggish fielding display, the captain dropped the simplest of chances off a teammate and also failed to grasp a tough lofted one off another bowler. Annoyingly, she also did take a clean catch off the same bowler but failed to review when the umpire rejected their appeal.
The recalled Brown bowled the quickest deliveries at the tournament so far but was still the team's costliest bowler, conceding 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spinners Excel as Alana King Stars
In contrast, the slow bowlers thrived, led by Alana King, whose performance could have been even more productive if Beth Mooney hadn’t missed one in the slip cordon.
Other spinners Georgia Wareham (2-22 off seven overs) and Gardner (two for 48 off nine overs) both contributed, while 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 Mostary’s unbeaten 66 off 80 deliveries took the team to their highest-ever total against the Australians, but the total was rendered straightforward by a side who had chased down 330 against the Indian side a few days before.
“It’s always nice when you’ve got the ‘Q’ next to your name in a global tournament,” remarked star performer Alana King. “Certainly it doesn’t stop here. We look forward to going back to the next venue to take on England and the Proteas.”
