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The Australian skipper has delivered superb back-to-back centuries to steer her squad into the last four of the World Cup, motivating them to a dominant 10-wicket victory over their opponents.

The wicketkeeper-batter finished unbeaten on 113, coming just a few days after her similarly stellar 142-run knock that saw off hosts India at the same Visakhapatnam venue. This time, she shared an undefeated double-century opening partnership with her opening partner (84 not out) to chase to their goal of 199 runs in just 24.5 overs.

“I thought I was a below par with the gloves, and perhaps a bit as captain as well tonight, but we’ll accept the two points and progress,” she said.

Ironically, the utmost professionalism of Thursday’s run-chase as the duo added 202 followed possibly the team's poorest display in the field under the captain's stewardship, with the captain scolding herself in particular for spilling a couple 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,” she added.

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

“Perhaps it’s just that phase of the tournament – we’ve been here a while, and it’s something we’ll reflect on,” the captain commented.

This allowed the opposition to eke out 198 for 9 after they had chosen to bat, their best-ever total in an ODI against Australia, with Sobhana Mostary compiling the first fifty ever for the Bangladeshi team against the reigning champions.

But the spinner's mesmeric unbroken 10-over bowling performance, in which she claimed 2-18 with four maiden overs, was vital to making sure the team's chase wasn’t too challenging.

The Captain Delighted with Victory that Confirms Semi-Final Spot

The Australian skipper was thrilled to learn that the triumph, which places her undefeated side at the top of the standings on nine points after four victories and a abandoned match, guarantees them a place in the last-four. “That's great news,” she said.

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

Litchfield Shines with First Tournament Fifty

Left-hander Litchfield hit 12 boundaries and a six, getting to her maiden tournament fifty off 46 balls soon after Healy 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 subpar fielding display, Healy dropped the simplest of edges off Darcie Brown and also failed to grasp a difficult skied one off Annabel Sutherland. Annoyingly, she also take a clean chance off Brown but didn’t have it reviewed when the official rejected their appeal.

The reinstated Darcie Brown sent down the quickest balls at the World Cup so far but was nonetheless the team's costliest bowling option, going for 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.

Spin Attack Excel as King Leads

Instead, the spinners excelled, led by King, whose spell could have been even more productive if a fielder hadn’t missed one in the slips.

Other spin bowlers Wareham (2-22 off seven) and Gardner (two for 48 off nine) both chipped in, while Sutherland consolidated her standing as the tournament’s top wicket-taker with her 2-41, bringing her total to 13.

Rubya Haider’s 44 runs and Mostary’s unbeaten 66 off 80 balls took Bangladesh to their highest-ever score against the Australians, but the target was rendered easy meat by a team who had successfully pursued 330 runs against the Indian side four days before.

“It’s always nice when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a global tournament,” said player-of-the-match Alana King. “No doubt it won't end here. We look forward to returning to the next venue to take on England and the Proteas.”