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Alyssa Healy has delivered brilliant consecutive hundreds to steer her team into the last four of the World Cup, motivating them to a commanding 10-wicket win over Bangladesh.

The wicketkeeper-batter finished not out on 113, arriving just a few days after her equally brilliant 142 that saw off the Indian team at the identical Visakhapatnam venue. This time, she shared an unbroken 200-run first-wicket stand with Phoebe Litchfield (84 not out) to chase to their goal of 199 in just under 25 overs.

“I thought I was a not at my best with the gloves, and perhaps a bit as skipper as well today, but we’ll take the two points and progress,” Healy remarked.

Ironically, the supreme professionalism of Thursday’s chase as the duo put on 202 came after perhaps Australia’s weakest display in the field under Healy’s leadership, with the skipper criticizing herself in especial for dropping a couple of the six chances that went down.

“I felt somewhat let down with my glovework, and I needed to compensate with the batting, and fortunately succeeded,” she added.

From the time statistics was initially taken on fielding performance metrics in the year 2013, the half-dozen missed catches marked 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 said.

It helped Bangladesh to eke out 9-198 after they had chosen to bat, their highest total in an ODI against the Aussies, with Sobhana Mostary scoring the maiden half-century ever for the Asian side against the reigning champions.

But the spinner's mesmeric continuous ten-over bowling performance, in which she took 2-18 with four maiden overs, was key to ensuring Australia’s target wasn’t too challenging.

The Captain Pleased with Win that Confirms Semi-Final Place

The Australian skipper was delighted to discover that the victory, which places her undefeated side at the top of the standings on nine points after four wins and a abandoned match, secures them a place in the semi-finals. “That’s really cool,” she exclaimed.

The experienced skipper raced to her hundred off just 73 balls, the fastest hundred of the tournament, and ended with 20 fours off the 77 balls she faced as she accelerated from her partner in the latter stages in the knock after they had gone almost boundary-for-boundary towards their half-centuries.

Litchfield Impresses with Maiden World Cup Fifty

The young batter Litchfield hit 12 fours and one maximum, getting to her first tournament fifty off 46 balls soon after her partner reached hers off 43. They went on to record the third-best partnership by any Aussie pair at a Women’s World Cup.

Earlier, during the subpar fielding display, Healy dropped the easiest of edges off a teammate and also failed to hold on to a tough lofted one off another bowler. Frustratingly, she also did take a clear catch off the same bowler but didn’t have it reviewed when the umpire turned down their shout.

The recalled Brown bowled the fastest balls at the World Cup so far but was still the team's costliest bowler, going for 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.

Spin Attack Excel as King Stars

In contrast, the spinners excelled, spearheaded by Alana King, whose performance could have been even more productive if a fielder hadn’t missed one in the slip cordon.

Other spinners Wareham (two for 22 off seven) and Gardner (two for 48 off nine overs) both contributed, while Annabel Sutherland strengthened her position as the competition's top wicket-taker with her 2-41, taking her total to thirteen.

Rubya Haider’s 44 runs and Mostary’s unbeaten 66 runs off 80 balls took the team to their record score against the Australians, but the total was made to look straightforward by a side who had successfully pursued 330 against the Indian side four days earlier.

“It’s always nice when you’ve got the ‘Q’ next to your name in a global tournament,” remarked player-of-the-match Alana King. “Certainly it doesn’t stop here. We look forward to going back to the next venue to take on England and South Africa.”