Australia canter to fourth straight victory

1. Australia canter to fourth straight victory
If there was evera time there were questionsoverAustralia’sbattingstrength –anddepth – itmight
well be pastnow.The defendingchampionscrushedPakistanby159 runsas theygallopedtowardsa
semi-final spotinthe Women’sWorldCup,andtohave done so withouttheircaptainMegLanning,who
sat out of the game because of a shoulderniggle,wasnothingshortof a warningsigntoall of their
rivals.
The margin of victory – theirfourthonthe trot – alsohidotherhurdlesthatAustraliahadto cross. They
had theirbacksto the wall after10 overs,withPakistanseamersAsmaviaIqbal andDianaBaigpicking
up a wicketeachand keepingthe score downtoa mere 18. WhenRachael Haynes,the stand-incaptain,
was wronglyadjudgedcaughtbehind,herteamwastotteringat60 for 3 in the 20th.
Elyse Villani,whowasoutfora duckoff the onlyball she had facedinthe competitionuntil now,added
a dash of madnessto proceedingswithahalf-centuryoff only34balls.HerpartnerEllyse Perrywasthe
consummate accumulatorandthe duo puton 83 runs in67 ballsto resurrectthe innings.WithPerrytoo
bringingupa half-century –hersecondinas many matches – Australiawere aimingat250.
Theyfinishedon290 thanksto wicketkeeperAlyssaHealy,whohadn’tbattedsofarinthe tournament.
She inflictedmore woundsintoadispiritedPakistanattack,smashingninefoursandtwosixesinher
unbeaten40-ball 63 as Australiahammered128 runsin the last15 overs.Healy,whose expertuse of the
crease helpedhermanipulate the bowlers’lengths,hadfine supportfromAshleighGardner,the No.10
batsman,whomade a 13-ball 22.
In reply,Pakistan’schase simplymeanderedalong.Batsmanafterbatsmancame outto defend and
spendtime atthe crease ratherthan have a crack at the bowling.Andwhentheyfinallydidpaysome
heedtoan everrisingrequiredrate,theysimplyperished.Atnostage were Australiastretched.The
onlyformof resistance came fromSanaMir, the captain,who faced85 deliveriesfor45.
JessJonassen,the left-armspinnerwhoopenedthe bowling,wasimpressive,finishingwith10-6-12-1.
KristenBeams,the legspinnerwhowasleftoutof the previousgame,slicedthroughthe middle order,
beatingMarinaIqbal,NainAbidi andIqbal withflightanddip.Gardnerchippedinwiththree wickets
while SarahAley,the 33-yearolddebutant,withnopressure tocontendwith,wasrewardedfor
disciplinedlinesandlengthstofinishwith2for29. Pakistanwere bowledoutfor131 in50 overs,their
fourthdefeatusheringthemclose toelimination.
Pakistan,whocontrolledthe firsthalf of the inningssuperbly,didn’thelptheircause withpoorfielding.
Villani wasletoff on7 whenSadiaYousuf failedtoattempt astraightforwardcatchat deepbackward
square leg.Strangely,she keptmovingbackinan attemptto stopthe boundary,onlyto see the ball spin
past heranyway.WicketkeeperSidraNawaztoowasguiltyof a few let-offsinthe formof catchesand
byes.
Additionally,Mirwasperhapsa little guiltyof usingherpacersnon-stopfor13 overs.Towardsthe end
of the openingspell,Iqbal andBaigstartedtotire as Australianailedfivefoursbetweenovers10to 15
to getoff the blocks.WhenYousuf reprieved Villani,the floodgatesopened.
© ESPN SportsMediaLtd.