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The Australian skipper has delivered brilliant consecutive centuries to guide her squad into the last four of the Women's Cricket World Cup, inspiring them to a merciless comprehensive trouncing over their opponents.

The wicketkeeper-batter finished unbeaten on 113 runs, coming just a few days after her similarly impressive 142-run knock that defeated hosts India at the identical Visakhapatnam stadium. This time, she combined in an unbroken double-century first-wicket stand with her opening partner (84no) to chase to their goal of 199 runs in just 24.5 overs.

“I felt I was a below par with the gloves, and perhaps a little bit as skipper as well today, but we’ll take the two points and progress,” she said.

Interestingly, the supreme professionalism of the day's chase as the pair added 202 runs came after possibly Australia’s shoddiest performance in the field under the captain's leadership, with the captain scolding herself in particular for dropping two of the six chances that went down.

“I felt somewhat let down with my glovework, and I needed to compensate with the bat, and luckily succeeded,” Healy continued.

From the time data was initially taken on fielding statistics in the year 2013, the half-dozen dropped catches represented Australia’s poorest fielding display at a Women’s World Cup.

“Maybe it’s just that time of the tournament – we’ve been here a while, and it’s an issue we’ll review,” Healy commented.

It helped Bangladesh to eke out 198 for 9 after they had opted to bat, their best-ever score in an One-Day International against the Aussies, with a key batter compiling the first fifty ever for the Bangladeshi team against the reigning champions.

But the spinner's mesmeric unbroken ten-over spell, in which she claimed two wickets for 18 runs with four maiden overs, was crucial to ensuring Australia’s chase wasn’t too challenging.

Healy Delighted with Victory that Confirms Knockout Spot

Healy was pleased to learn that the triumph, which places her undefeated team at the top of the group table on nine points after four wins and a wash-out, secures them a place in the last-four. “That's great news,” she said.

The experienced skipper sped to her century off just 73 balls, the fastest hundred of the World Cup, and finished with 20 boundaries off the 77 balls she faced as she accelerated from Litchfield later in the knock after they had gone practically boundary-for-boundary towards their fifties.

The Opener Shines with First World Cup Half-Century

Left-hander Litchfield hit 12 fours and a six, reaching to her maiden World Cup half-century off 46 deliveries shortly after Healy reached hers off 43. They went on to record the third-highest partnership by any Australian pair at a World Cup event.

Earlier, during the subpar fielding effort, the captain spilled the simplest of chances off Darcie Brown and also failed to grasp a difficult lofted one off another bowler. Annoyingly, she also did take a clean chance off the same bowler but didn’t have it reviewed when the umpire rejected their appeal.

The reinstated Brown bowled the fastest deliveries at the World Cup so far but was still the Aussies’ costliest bowler, conceding 0-52 off her nine overs.

Spin Attack Excel as Alana King Stars

In contrast, the slow bowlers thrived, led by Alana King, whose spell could have been more successful if a fielder hadn’t dropped one in the slips.

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

Rubya Haider’s 44 runs and another's unbeaten 66 runs off 80 balls took Bangladesh to their highest-ever total against the Australians, but the target was rendered easy meat by a team who had chased down 330 against India a few 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 doesn’t stop here. We anticipate going back to the next venue to face England and South Africa.”