🔗 Share this article Alyssa Healy Hammers a Second Century to Propel the Australian Team into Cricket World Cup Knockout Stage Alyssa Healy has executed brilliant back-to-back hundreds to guide her squad into the semi-finals of the Women's Cricket World Cup, inspiring them to a dominant comprehensive trouncing over Bangladesh. The wicketkeeper-batter finished not out on 113 runs, coming just a few days after her equally stellar 142 that defeated the Indian team at the same Visakhapatnam stadium. This time, she combined in an unbroken 200-run opening partnership with her opening partner (84no) to chase to their target of 199 runs in just 24.5 overs. “I felt I was a not at my best behind the stumps, and perhaps a bit as skipper as well tonight, but we’ll take the two points and move on,” she said. Ironically, the utmost professionalism of Thursday’s run-chase as the duo added 202 followed possibly the team's poorest performance in the field under the captain's leadership, with the captain scolding herself in especial for spilling two of the six 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 succeeded,” Healy continued. From the time statistics was first recorded on fielding performance statistics in 2013, the half-dozen dropped catches represented the team's poorest fielding display at a World Cup tournament. “Maybe it’s just that phase of the tournament – we’ve been here a little while, and it’s an issue we’ll review,” Healy commented. This allowed Bangladesh to eke out 9-198 after they had chosen to bat, their best-ever total in an One-Day International against Australia, with a key batter compiling the first half-century ever for the Asian side against the reigning champions. But the spinner's mesmeric unbroken ten-over bowling performance, in which she claimed two wickets for 18 runs with four maidens, was crucial to ensuring Australia’s target wasn’t too challenging. Healy Delighted with Win that Seals Semi-Final Spot The Australian skipper was pleased to learn that the triumph, which puts her unbeaten team top of the group table on nine points after four wins and a abandoned match, guarantees them a berth in the last-four. “That’s really cool,” she said. The 35-year-old captain sped to her century off just 73 balls, the fastest century of the tournament, and ended with 20 fours off the 77 deliveries she confronted as she accelerated from Litchfield later in the knock after they had gone almost boundary-for-boundary towards their half-centuries. The Opener Impresses with Maiden World Cup Half-Century Left-hander Litchfield struck 12 boundaries and one maximum, reaching to her maiden tournament half-century off 46 balls soon after her partner got there off 43 balls. They went on to record the third-best partnership by any Aussie duo at a Women’s World Cup. In the first innings, during the sluggish fielding effort, the captain dropped the simplest of chances off a teammate and also failed to hold on to a tough skied one off Annabel Sutherland. Annoyingly, she also take a clean chance off Brown but failed to review when the umpire rejected their shout. The reinstated Darcie Brown bowled the fastest deliveries at the World Cup so far but was still the team's most expensive bowler, conceding 0-52 off her nine overs. Spin Attack Excel as King Leads In contrast, the slow bowlers thrived, spearheaded by King, whose spell could have been even more productive if a fielder hadn’t missed one in the slips. Fellow spin bowlers Wareham (two for 22 off seven overs) and Ash Gardner (2-48 off nine overs) both chipped in, while Annabel Sutherland strengthened her standing as the tournament’s top wicket-taker with her two for 41, taking her tally to 13. A batter's 44 runs and Mostary’s unbeaten 66 runs off 80 deliveries took the team to their highest-ever score against the Aussies, but the target was made to look easy meat by a team who had successfully pursued 330 runs against the Indian side a few days before. “It's fantastic when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a global tournament,” remarked star performer Alana King. “No doubt it won't end here. We anticipate going back to Indore to face England and South Africa.”