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Alyssa Healy has produced outstanding back-to-back centuries to guide her team into the semi-finals of the World Cup, motivating them to a merciless 10-wicket victory over Bangladesh.

Healy remained not out on 113, coming just four days after her similarly stellar 142 that defeated the Indian team at the same Visakhapatnam venue. This time, she shared an unbroken 200-run first-wicket stand with her opening partner (84 not out) to dash to their target of 199 runs in just 24.5 deliveries.

“I thought I was a below par behind the stumps, and perhaps a little bit as skipper as well today, but we’ll take the win and progress,” Healy remarked.

Interestingly, the supreme expertise of Thursday’s chase as the pair added 202 runs followed perhaps Australia’s shoddiest display in the field under Healy’s leadership, with the captain criticizing herself in especial for dropping two of the six catches that went down.

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

From the time data was initially taken on fielding statistics in the year 2013, the half-dozen missed catches represented the team's poorest fielding display at a World Cup tournament.

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

It helped Bangladesh to eke out 198 for 9 after they had opted to bat, their best-ever total in an ODI against Australia, with Sobhana Mostary scoring the maiden fifty ever for the Asian side against the reigning champions.

But Alana King mesmeric continuous 10-over spell, in which she took 2-18 with four maidens, was crucial to making sure the team's target remained manageable.

Healy Pleased with Win that Seals Semi-Final Spot

The Australian skipper was thrilled to discover that the victory, which places her undefeated team at the top of the group table on nine points after four victories and a abandoned match, guarantees them a place in the last-four. “That's fantastic,” she said.

The 35-year-old skipper raced to her century off just 73 deliveries, the quickest century of the World Cup, and ended with 20 boundaries off the 77 balls she confronted as she accelerated from Litchfield in the latter stages in the innings after they had gone almost shot for shot towards their half-centuries.

The Opener Impresses with Maiden Tournament Half-Century

Left-hander Phoebe Litchfield struck 12 boundaries and one maximum, reaching to her maiden World Cup half-century off 46 deliveries soon after Healy reached hers off 43. They went on to record the third-highest partnership by any Aussie duo at a World Cup event.

In the first innings, during the subpar fielding effort, the captain spilled the easiest of chances off Darcie Brown and also failed to grasp a tough skied one off another bowler. Annoyingly, she also take a clear chance off Brown but didn’t have it reviewed when the official turned down their appeal.

The recalled Brown bowled the quickest balls at the tournament so far but was still the Aussies’ costliest bowling option, going for 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.

Spinners Thrive as Alana King Stars

In contrast, the spinners thrived, led by Alana King, whose performance could have been more successful if Beth Mooney hadn’t missed one in the slips.

Fellow spin bowlers Wareham (two for 22 off seven) and Ash Gardner (2-48 off nine overs) both contributed, while Sutherland consolidated her position as the tournament’s top wicket-taker with her 2-41, bringing her total to thirteen.

A batter's 44 runs and another's not out 66 runs off 80 deliveries took the team to their highest-ever score against the Aussies, but the target was rendered easy meat by a team who had chased down 330 runs against the Indian side four days before.

“It’s always nice when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a World Cup,” said player-of-the-match Alana King. “Certainly it won't end here. We look forward to returning to Indore to face England and South Africa.”