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Alyssa Healy has executed outstanding back-to-back hundreds to lead her team into the last four of the World Cup, motivating them to a commanding 10-wicket victory over Bangladesh.

Healy finished unbeaten on 113 runs, arriving just four days after her equally impressive 142 that saw off the Indian team at the same Visakhapatnam stadium. This time, she combined in an undefeated double-century first-wicket stand with Phoebe Litchfield (84 not out) to dash to their target of 199 in just 24.5 deliveries.

“I felt I was a not at my best with the gloves, and perhaps a little bit as skipper as well today, but we’ll accept the win and move on,” she said.

Interestingly, the utmost professionalism of Thursday’s chase as the pair put on 202 runs followed perhaps Australia’s weakest performance in the field under Healy’s stewardship, with the captain criticizing herself in particular for spilling two of the six chances that went down.

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

From the time data was first recorded on fielding statistics in 2013, the six dropped opportunities marked the team's poorest fielding showing at a Women’s World Cup.

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

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

But the spinner's spellbinding unbroken 10-over bowling performance, in which she took two wickets for 18 runs with four maiden overs, was key to making sure the team's target wasn’t too challenging.

Healy Delighted with Win that Seals Semi-Final Spot

The Australian skipper was delighted to discover that the triumph, which puts her undefeated team at the top of the group table on nine points after four victories and a abandoned match, secures them a berth in the last-four. “That's great news,” she exclaimed.

The 35-year-old skipper sped to her century off just 73 deliveries, the quickest hundred of the World Cup, and finished with 20 boundaries off the 77 balls she faced as she accelerated from Litchfield later in the innings after they had gone practically boundary-for-boundary towards their fifties.

The Opener Impresses with Maiden Tournament Fifty

The young batter Phoebe Litchfield struck 12 fours and one maximum, reaching to her first World Cup half-century off 46 deliveries soon after her partner reached hers off 43 balls. They went on to record the third-best stand by any Aussie pair at a Women’s World Cup.

Earlier, during the sluggish fielding display, Healy spilled the simplest of edges off a teammate and also failed to hold on to a difficult skied one off another bowler. Annoyingly, she also did take a clear catch off the same bowler but failed to review when the umpire rejected their shout.

The reinstated Darcie Brown bowled the quickest balls at the World Cup so far but was nonetheless the Aussies’ most expensive bowler, going for 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.

Spin Attack Excel as Alana King Stars

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

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

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

“It's fantastic when you’ve got the ‘Q’ next to your name in a World Cup,” said star performer Alana King. “Certainly it doesn’t stop here. We anticipate going back to the next venue to take on England and the Proteas.”