WOMEN’S WORLD CUP 2022: As Australia advances to another World Cup final, Healy and Haynes enable the West Indies to demolish Australia.
Australia defeated West Indies by 157 runs to advance to the 2022 World Cup final; which will be their ninth in 12 editions. Australia posted a commanding 305/3 from their 45 overs in a rain-shortened 45-overs-per-side; semifinal at the Basin Reserve in Wellington on Wednesday, thanks to Alyssa Healy’s well-paced 129; her dominating double-century opening stand with Rachael Haynes (85) and a Beth Mooney cameo (43*off 31) at the end. West Indies’ lofty chase lacked fight and fell short as feared, despite some early vigour from Deandra Dottin.
When Australia was give the opportunity to bat first, Healy and Haynes overcame a slow start; (only 37 runs from their 9-over powerplay) to put up Australia’s highest partnership in this World Cup; combining for a 216-run stand that put the West Indies out of their misery well before their chase could begin. While Haynes was a powerplay wizard, hitting anything short or overpitch directly to the net; Healy was 11 off 29 and boundary-less at one point until turning it around dramatically.
Healy pushed Australia past 50 in the 12th over and 100 by the end of the 20th; while the pair both achieved their fifties two overs later as she got her stride. By the second drinks break, the wicketkeeper had outscored her vice-captain lofting and sweeping some utter; freebies from an inconsistent West Indies attack to pick up half a dozen boundaries on her way to 83 off 82.
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Karishma Ramharack’s waist-high full toss gave her her only six, putting her in the 90s. Her fifty took 63 balls to achieve, and Healy only needed 28 more to complete her maiden World Cup century; with Haynes playing second fiddle throughout.
Even if the West Indies were able to pull together a few boundary-free overs; the openers’ dashing between the wickets was excellent. West Indies’ problems were exacerbate by a series of costly drops. Haynes and Healy were both grants early reprieves, when their sentences were still in the single digits. Haynes was given a second chance when she was on 61, and Healy when she was on 123; but West Indies quickly made apologies, breaking through after nearly 33 overs of battling for a break. Chinelle Henry’s double-wicket over to deny Haynes a century and early dismissal of pinch-hitter Gardner provided some relief; but the damage had already been done.
Mooney, on the other hand, didn’t let West Indies take advantage of the opportunity and scored; a quickfire 43 not out, including a hat-trick of boundaries against Stafanie Taylor in the 43rd over. Her 69-run stand with Meg Lanning took Australia above 300 points in the end.
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Despite losing Rashada Williams early in the game, Dottin and Hayley Matthews gave the West Indies’; chase a more certain start than their body language suggested at the halfway point. The former, in particular, smashed five boundaries in her 35-ball 34 before holing out to Annabel Sutherland; at long-on, just after powerplay, off Tahlia McGrath.
West Indies’ asking rate steadily increased after that. After a brief spell of resistance, during which Matthews and Taylor put on 47 for the fourth wicket; the former was dismiss for 34 as well. Any prospect of a recovery was shatter when they lost their middle-order in the space of ten deliveries for just nine runs. Taylor fought her way to 46 and was award a life when Sutherland missed a catch off Gardner. But she could only add two more runs to her score before being caught by Alana King at the conclusion of the 37th over. With Anisa Mohammed hurt and Henry unable to bat, West Indies were eliminated from the World Cup after a lacklusterperformance.