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The Australian skipper has executed brilliant back-to-back centuries to guide her team into the last four of the Women's Cricket World Cup, driving them to a commanding comprehensive win over Bangladesh.

The wicketkeeper-batter remained unbeaten on 113, coming just a few days after her equally stellar 142-run knock that defeated hosts India at the same Visakhapatnam venue. This time, she shared an undefeated 200-run opening partnership with her opening partner (84no) to dash to their target of 199 runs in just 24.5 overs.

“I thought I was a little bit poor with the gloves, and probably a little bit as skipper as well tonight, but we’ll take the two points and progress,” she said.

Ironically, the supreme expertise of Thursday’s chase as the pair added 202 came after perhaps the team's poorest display in the field under the captain's leadership, with the skipper scolding herself in especial for dropping two of the six catches that went down.

“I was a little bit disappointed with my wicketkeeping, and I needed to compensate with the batting, and luckily got the job done,” she added.

Since statistics was initially taken on fielding performance metrics in 2013, the half-dozen dropped catches represented Australia’s poorest fielding display at a Women’s World Cup.

“Perhaps 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.

This allowed the opposition to eke out 9-198 after they had opted to bat, their highest score in an ODI against the Aussies, with a key batter scoring the first fifty ever for the Asian side against the reigning champions.

But the spinner's spellbinding continuous 10-over spell, in which she took two wickets for 18 runs with four maidens, was vital to ensuring the team's chase wasn’t too challenging.

Healy Delighted with Win that Seals Semi-Final Spot

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

The experienced skipper sped to her century off just 73 deliveries, the fastest century of the tournament, and finished with 20 boundaries off the 77 deliveries she confronted as she pulled away from her partner later in the knock after they had gone practically shot for shot towards their fifties.

Litchfield Impresses with First Tournament Fifty

Left-hander Litchfield struck 12 fours and one maximum, getting to her maiden tournament half-century off 46 balls soon after her partner got there off 43. They went on to achieve the third-highest partnership by any Aussie pair at a Women’s World Cup.

Earlier, during the sluggish fielding display, the captain dropped the easiest of chances off a teammate and also failed to hold on to a difficult lofted one off Annabel Sutherland. Annoyingly, she also take a clean chance off Brown but didn’t have it reviewed when the official rejected their shout.

The recalled Darcie Brown sent down the fastest deliveries at the tournament so far but was nonetheless the team's most expensive bowling option, conceding 0-52 off her nine overs.

Spinners Excel as King Leads

Instead, the slow bowlers excelled, led by Alana 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) and Gardner (2-48 off nine) both contributed, while Annabel Sutherland strengthened her position as the competition's top wicket-taker with her two for 41, taking her total to thirteen.

A batter's 44 runs and Mostary’s not out 66 runs off 80 balls took the team to their highest-ever score against the Aussies, but the total was rendered easy meat by a team who had successfully pursued 330 against India four days earlier.

“It’s always nice when you’ve got the ‘Q’ next to your name in a World Cup,” remarked player-of-the-match Alana King. “No doubt it won't end here. We look forward to going back to Indore to face England and South Africa.”