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Alyssa Healy has produced outstanding back-to-back centuries to lead her squad into the last four of the World Cup, motivating them to a merciless 10-wicket win over Bangladesh.

The wicketkeeper-batter finished not out on 113 runs, coming just four days after her equally impressive 142 that defeated the Indian team at the identical Visakhapatnam stadium. This time, she shared an unbroken 200-run opening partnership with Phoebe Litchfield (84no) to race to their goal of 199 runs in just under 25 deliveries.

“I felt I was a little bit poor behind the stumps, and probably a bit as captain as well today, but we’ll take the win and move on,” Healy remarked.

Interestingly, the supreme expertise of the day's chase as the pair added 202 runs came after possibly the team's weakest display in the field under the captain's stewardship, with the skipper criticizing herself in particular for spilling two of the half-dozen catches that went down.

“I was a little bit disappointed with my glovework, and I needed to compensate with the batting, and luckily got the job done,” she added.

Since data was initially recorded on fielding statistics in the year 2013, the six dropped opportunities marked Australia’s worst fielding display at a Women’s World Cup.

“Perhaps it’s just that phase of the competition – we’ve been here a little while, and it’s something we’ll analyze,” Healy said.

This allowed Bangladesh to manage 198 for 9 after they had chosen to bat, their best-ever score in an One-Day International against the Aussies, with Sobhana Mostary scoring the first half-century ever for the Bangladeshi team against the world champions.

But the spinner's mesmeric continuous ten-over bowling performance, in which she took 2-18 with four maidens, was crucial to making sure Australia’s chase remained manageable.

The Captain Pleased with Victory that Seals Semi-Final Spot

The Australian skipper was thrilled to learn that the victory, which places her undefeated team at the top of the group table on nine points after four wins and a abandoned match, secures them a place in the semi-finals. “That’s really cool,” she said.

The experienced skipper sped to her century off just 73 balls, the quickest hundred of the tournament, and finished with 20 boundaries off the 77 balls she confronted as she pulled away from her partner in the latter stages in the knock after they had gone practically boundary-for-boundary towards their half-centuries.

The Opener Shines with First World Cup Fifty

The young batter Litchfield hit 12 fours and one maximum, getting to her maiden World Cup fifty off 46 balls soon after Healy reached hers off 43. They went on to achieve the third-highest stand by any Australian pair at a Women’s World Cup.

In the first innings, during the sluggish fielding effort, the captain spilled the easiest of chances off Darcie Brown and also was unable to hold on to a difficult lofted one off another bowler. Annoyingly, she also did take a clear catch off the same bowler but failed to review when the official rejected their shout.

The recalled Brown sent down the quickest balls at the World Cup so far but was nonetheless the Aussies’ most expensive bowling option, going for 0-52 off her nine overs.

Spinners Thrive as Alana King Stars

In contrast, the slow bowlers excelled, led by King, whose performance could have been even more productive if a fielder hadn’t dropped one in the slip cordon.

Other spin bowlers Georgia Wareham (two for 22 off seven overs) and Ash Gardner (2-48 off nine overs) both chipped in, while Sutherland consolidated her position as the competition's top wicket-taker with her two for 41, bringing her tally to 13.

A batter's 44 and Mostary’s unbeaten 66 off 80 balls took Bangladesh to their record total against the Aussies, but the target was rendered straightforward by a side who had chased down 330 runs against the Indian side four days earlier.

“It's great when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a global tournament,” said star performer Alana King. “Certainly it won't end here. We anticipate returning to Indore to take on England and South Africa.”