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Alyssa Healy has delivered superb consecutive hundreds to steer her squad into the semi-finals of the World Cup, motivating them to a merciless 10-wicket victory over their opponents.

The wicketkeeper-batter remained unbeaten on 113 runs, coming just four days after her equally impressive 142 that saw off hosts India at the identical Visakhapatnam venue. This time, she shared an undefeated 200-run opening partnership with Phoebe Litchfield (84 not out) to race to their goal of 199 in just under 25 overs.

“I thought I was a below par with the gloves, and perhaps a bit as skipper as well today, but we’ll take the two points and move on,” Healy remarked.

Ironically, the supreme expertise of Thursday’s run-chase as the duo put on 202 came after possibly the team's poorest performance in the fielding department under the captain's leadership, with the captain criticizing herself in especial for dropping a couple of the six catches that were missed.

“I was a little bit disappointed with my wicketkeeping, and I needed to compensate with the bat, and luckily succeeded,” Healy continued.

From the time statistics was initially taken on fielding performance metrics in the year 2013, the six dropped opportunities marked Australia’s worst 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 something we’ll reflect on,” Healy commented.

This allowed Bangladesh to manage 198 for 9 after they had opted to bat, their best-ever total in an One-Day International against Australia, with a key batter scoring the maiden fifty ever for the Asian side against the reigning champions.

But the spinner's mesmeric unbroken ten-over bowling performance, in which she took two wickets for 18 runs with four maidens, was key to making sure the team's target wasn’t too challenging.

Healy Pleased with Victory that Seals Knockout Place

The Australian skipper was thrilled to learn that the victory, which places her unbeaten side top of the group table on nine points after four victories and a abandoned match, secures them a berth in the semi-finals. “That's fantastic,” she exclaimed.

The 35-year-old captain raced to her hundred off just 73 balls, the fastest hundred of the World Cup, and finished with 20 fours off the 77 balls she confronted as she pulled away from her partner later in the innings after they had gone practically boundary-for-boundary towards their fifties.

Litchfield Shines with First World Cup Half-Century

Left-hander Litchfield hit 12 fours and a six, reaching to her first tournament fifty off 46 deliveries soon after her partner reached hers off 43. They went on to achieve the third-best partnership by any Aussie duo at a World Cup event.

Earlier, during the sluggish fielding display, the captain dropped the simplest of edges off Darcie Brown and also was unable to hold on to a tough skied one off another bowler. Frustratingly, she also take a clear chance off the same bowler but failed to review when the umpire turned down their appeal.

The recalled Brown bowled the fastest deliveries at the World Cup so far but was nonetheless the Aussies’ most expensive bowler, conceding 0-52 off her nine overs.

Spinners Thrive as Alana King Leads

In contrast, the slow bowlers thrived, spearheaded by King, whose performance could have been more successful if a fielder hadn’t dropped one in the slip cordon.

Fellow spin bowlers Wareham (two for 22 off seven) and Gardner (two for 48 off nine overs) both contributed, while Sutherland strengthened her position as the competition's leading wicket-taker with her 2-41, taking her total to 13.

A batter's 44 runs and another's not out 66 off 80 deliveries took Bangladesh to their record total against the Australians, but the total was rendered straightforward by a team who had chased down 330 against India four days before.

“It's fantastic when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a global tournament,” said star performer King. “Certainly it doesn’t stop here. We look forward to returning to Indore to take on the English team and the Proteas.”