Alyssa Healy has delivered superb consecutive hundreds to lead her team into the last four of the World Cup, driving them to a commanding 10-wicket win over their opponents.
Healy finished unbeaten on 113, arriving just four days after her equally impressive 142 that defeated hosts India at the same Visakhapatnam stadium. This time, she shared an undefeated double-century opening partnership with her opening partner (84no) to dash to their goal of 199 in just 24.5 overs.
“I thought I was a little bit poor behind the stumps, and perhaps a bit as skipper as well today, but we’ll accept the two points and progress,” Healy remarked.
Interestingly, the supreme expertise of Thursday’s run-chase as the duo put on 202 followed perhaps the team's shoddiest display in the field under the captain's stewardship, with the captain scolding herself in particular for dropping 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,” Healy continued.
Since statistics was initially taken on fielding statistics in 2013, the half-dozen dropped opportunities represented Australia’s poorest fielding showing at a World Cup tournament.
“Maybe it’s just that time of the competition – we’ve been here a little while, and it’s an issue we’ll reflect on,” the captain commented.
This allowed the opposition to manage 9-198 after they had opted to bat, their highest total in an ODI against the Aussies, with a key batter compiling the maiden half-century ever for the Asian side against the reigning champions.
But Alana King spellbinding unbroken ten-over bowling performance, in which she claimed 2-18 with four maidens, was crucial to making sure Australia’s chase remained manageable.
Healy Delighted with Win that Confirms Semi-Final Place
The Australian skipper was pleased to learn that the triumph, which places her undefeated side top of the standings on nine points after four wins and a wash-out, secures them a berth in the semi-finals. “That’s really cool,” she exclaimed.
The 35-year-old skipper raced to her hundred off just 73 balls, the quickest hundred of the World Cup, and ended with 20 fours off the 77 balls she faced as she pulled away from Litchfield in the latter stages in the innings after they had gone almost boundary-for-boundary towards their half-centuries.
Litchfield Impresses with Maiden World Cup Half-Century
The young batter Phoebe Litchfield hit 12 boundaries and a six, reaching to her first World Cup fifty off 46 balls soon after Healy reached hers off 43 balls. They went on to achieve the third-highest partnership by any Australian pair at a World Cup event.
In the first innings, during the sluggish fielding effort, the captain spilled the easiest of edges off a teammate and also failed to grasp a difficult lofted one off Annabel Sutherland. Frustratingly, she also did take a clean catch off the same bowler but failed to review when the umpire rejected their appeal.
The reinstated Brown bowled the quickest balls at the World Cup so far but was still the team's costliest bowler, going for 0-52 off her nine overs.
Spin Attack Excel as Alana King Leads
In contrast, the spinners thrived, spearheaded by Alana King, whose spell could have been even more productive if Beth Mooney hadn’t dropped one in the slips.
Other spin bowlers Georgia Wareham (2-22 off seven) and Ash Gardner (two for 48 off nine) both contributed, while Annabel Sutherland consolidated her position as the competition's top wicket-taker with her two for 41, taking her tally to thirteen.
A batter's 44 and another's unbeaten 66 runs off 80 deliveries took the team to their record score against the Australians, but the target was made to look easy meat by a team who had successfully pursued 330 runs against India a few days before.
“It’s always nice when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a World Cup,” remarked player-of-the-match Alana King. “Certainly it won't end here. We look forward to returning to the next venue to take on the English team and South Africa.”
