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Alyssa Healy has produced outstanding back-to-back hundreds to steer her squad into the semi-finals of the World Cup, inspiring them to a merciless comprehensive victory over their opponents.

The wicketkeeper-batter finished unbeaten on 113, arriving just four days after her equally stellar 142-run knock that saw off the Indian team at the same Visakhapatnam stadium. This time, she shared an undefeated double-century first-wicket stand with Phoebe Litchfield (84no) to race to their goal of 199 runs in just 24.5 overs.

“I felt I was a below par behind the stumps, and perhaps a bit as captain as well today, but we’ll take the two points and progress,” she said.

Ironically, the supreme expertise of the day's chase as the duo added 202 runs followed perhaps the team's poorest display in the fielding department under Healy’s leadership, with the skipper criticizing herself in particular for spilling two of the six chances that went down.

“I felt somewhat let down with my glovework, and I had a little bit to make up for with the bat, and luckily succeeded,” she added.

Since statistics was initially recorded on fielding performance metrics in 2013, the six dropped catches marked the team's worst fielding showing at a World Cup tournament.

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

It helped Bangladesh to eke out 198 for 9 after they had opted to bat first, 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 the spinner's mesmeric unbroken 10-over bowling performance, in which she took 2-18 with four maiden overs, was key to ensuring the team's chase wasn’t too challenging.

Healy Delighted with Win that Confirms Knockout Place

The Australian skipper was thrilled to discover that the victory, which puts her unbeaten team top of the group table on nine points after four wins and a wash-out, guarantees them a place in the semi-finals. “That's fantastic,” she said.

The experienced captain sped to her century off just 73 balls, the quickest hundred of the tournament, and ended with 20 fours off the 77 balls she confronted as she accelerated from Litchfield later in the innings after they had gone almost boundary-for-boundary towards their half-centuries.

The Opener Impresses with First World Cup Half-Century

Left-hander Phoebe Litchfield struck 12 boundaries and one maximum, reaching to her maiden World Cup half-century off 46 balls shortly after Healy got there off 43 balls. They went on to achieve the third-best stand by any Australian pair at a World Cup event.

In the first innings, during the sluggish fielding effort, the captain spilled the simplest of edges off a teammate and also failed to grasp a tough skied one off Annabel Sutherland. Annoyingly, she also take a clear chance off the same bowler but didn’t have it reviewed when the official turned down their shout.

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

Spin Attack Thrive as Alana King Leads

Instead, the slow bowlers thrived, led by Alana King, whose spell could have been even more productive if Beth Mooney hadn’t dropped one in the slip cordon.

Fellow spin bowlers Wareham (two for 22 off seven) and 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 total to thirteen.

A batter's 44 and another's unbeaten 66 off 80 deliveries took the team to their record total against the Aussies, but the target was made to look easy meat by a side who had successfully pursued 330 against India four days before.

“It's fantastic when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a World Cup,” remarked player-of-the-match Alana King. “No doubt it doesn’t stop here. We anticipate returning to the next venue to take on the English team and the Proteas.”