Australia’s women’s cricket team delivered a commanding performance to defeat South Africa by seven wickets in a one-sided ICC Women’s World Cup encounter at the Holkar Cricket Stadium in Indore on Saturday.
The star of the show was leg-spinner Alana King, whose sensational spell of 7 for 18 in seven overs not only dismantled the South African batting lineup but also etched her name into the record books, after Australia had sent the Proteas in to bat first.
“It was not the way we wanted to end group stages. We have done well in this tournament. It is not the worst thing in the world and it was a decent wicket to bat on but King was brilliant, she bowled very well,” said Laura Wolvaardt.
King’s figures are now the best ever by an Australian in One Day Internationals (ODIs) and the finest bowling performance in Women’s World Cup history. Her devastating spell left South Africa reeling, as they were bundled out for a paltry 97 in just 24 overs.
“I was expecting it to slide on a little bit more with the drizzle that was around in the first innings, but I was happy with what I extracted,” said King post-match.
South Africa’s innings never really got going. Only three batters managed to reach double figures. Wolvaardt provided a glimmer of hope with a brisk 31 off 25 balls, laced with seven boundaries. She shared an opening stand of 32 with Tazmin Brits, who could only manage six runs before being trapped LBW by Kim Garth (5-2-21-1).
“I am timing it well, but we will have to forget about today and focus on semi-final,” added the South African captain.
Wolvaardt was the first to fall, chipping a delivery from Megan Schutt (5-2-21-1) straight to King to short mid-wicket. From there, the innings unravelled rapidly. Suné Luus (6) was caught at mid-wicket by Annabel Sutherland off King, while Annarie Derckson (5) was bowled comprehensively.
“It was good fun and pretty awesome,” said Austrlia’s captain, Tahlia McGrath. “I just wanted to get the ball in her hand and she was relentless. I am super happy for her”, added the Australian skipper.
Marizanne Kapp fell for a duck, caught at backward point by Garth off King, with Chloe Tryon following immediately, gifting King a double-wicket maiden by hitting straight to short mid-wicket for a first ball duck.
“It was down to variation and I was just trying to give it a rip and get as much turn as I could,” added player of the match King.
Masabata Klaas was bowled for four, and although Sinalo Jafta tried to counterattack with an entertaining 29 off 17 balls (including seven boundaries), she too was bowled by King. Nadine de Klerk (14), who added 21 runs with Jafta, met the same fate. The innings ended with Ayabonga Khaka being bowled by Ashleigh Gardner (4-0-19-1), leaving Nonkululeko Mlaba stranded on 1 not out.
Australia’s bowlers were clinical and disciplined, conceding just one wide in the entire innings.
“We tweaked our plans a little bit, stayed calm and then took crucial wickets,” added McGrath.
In reply, South Africa briefly threatened to make a contest of it. Kapp (4-3-11-1) struck early, having Phoebe Litchfield caught at first slip by Tryon for five. Klaas (3-0-14-1) then removed Ellyse Perry for a duck with a stunning catch by De Klerk at backward point.
However, any hopes of a South African comeback were dashed by a composed and fluent partnership between Georgia Voll (38 not out) and Beth Mooney (42). The pair added 76 runs for the third wicket in just 67 balls, taking the game away from the visitors.
Voll carried her bat to the finish, striking seven boundaries from 38 balls. Mooney was the aggressor, with a fluent 42 off 41 deliveries, striking six fours before being dismissed by De Klerk (3-0-13-1) ,caught by Wolvaardt at short extra-cover just before the target was reached.
“We wanted to bat with some intent in the chase. Few lost a few early wickets but it was awesome to get the job done and move onto semi-finals,” ended McGrath.
Annabel Sutherland came in and finished the job in style, hitting two boundaries in her four-ball cameo to seal the win. Australia reached the target in just 16.5 overs, ending on 98 for 3.
Australia will now face India in the second semi-final on Thursday while the Proteas will face off against England, a team they lost to 10 wickets in their tournament opener, on Wednesday in the first semi-final.