Australia will face defending champions England or South Africa in Sunday’s final in Christchurch; Alyssa Healy breaks 129 of 107 deliveries as Australia go 305-3 against the West Indies in the semi-final before winning by 157 runs when opponents are held to 148-8 in Wellington.
Alyssa Healy’s fourth ODI century for Australia came from 91 balls
Australia stormed into the Women’s World Cup final with a 157-run demolition of the West Indies in a rain-reduced game in Wellington.
Australia went 305-3 from her 45 overs, the highest total in a Women’s World Cup knockout match, as Alyssa Healy (129 from 107 balls) scored a 91-ball century and put up 216 with Rachael Haynes (85 from 100) for the first gate.
Meg Lanning’s side then limited the West Indies to 148 in total from 37 overs in the chase – Anisa Mohammed and Chinelle Henry unable to bat due to injury as they recorded their eighth win out of eight in this year’s tournament and they moved away one win away from a record-extending seventh World Cup title over 50.
Australia will face defending champions England or South Africa in Sunday’s trophy game at Hagley Oval in Christchurch.
England and South Africa will meet in the second semi-final, also in Christchurch, live on Sky Sports Cricket World Cup and the Sky Sports Cricket YouTube channel from 1.30am on Thursday.
Australia’s win in the first semi-final was their 37th in their last 38 one-day internationals.
Healy and Haynes led the way with the bat as they punished the West Indies for four failed catches, a particularly costly one when Henry (2-51) spilled Healy on just five of his own bowls.
Healy started slowly with his first 50 runs coming from 63 balls, but the next 50 came from just 28 in an inning that featured 17 fours and one six.
Skipper Lanning (26 of 26) and Beth Mooney (43 not of 31) also contributed with the bat, while Mooney then took a surprising one-handed catch on the square leg to eliminate Rashada Williams (0) early in the chase. of the West Indies.
Healy also produced some good momentum down the field, shutting out Chedean Nation (7) with a direct hit after he had run from wicketkeeping position to short, thin leg.
Jess Jonassen (2-14) and Megan Schutt (1-8) were among those who impressed on the ball as Australia dealt with the loss of injured Ellyse Perry (back spasm).
The West Indies were bidding to reach their second World Cup final in over-50s (they finished runners-up to Australia in 2013), but Meg Lanning’s team outgunned them at Basin Reserve.
Only captain Stafanie Taylor (48), Hayley Matthews (34) and Deandra Dottin (34) made double figures with the bat for the West Indies.
Australia’s last title win in 2013 followed previous wins in 1978, 1982, 1988, 1997 and 2005.
Lanning’s team were eliminated by India at the semi-final stage in 2017, but this time there was no heartbreak in the last four for Australia.
The six-time champions will be favorites against whomever they play in this year’s final – they defeated England and South Africa by 12 runs and five wickets, respectively, in the group stage.
Player of the Match, Alyssa Healy: “[My form] It has been here, there and everywhere. It probably hasn’t been exactly where I’d like it to be, not that clinical. Once I got to 73, I figured I’d better make sure I went a little further.
“One day cricket is a bit of a game of patience. You have to manage the ebbs and flows. [Bowlers] it can get on top of you early, but it can come back in the middle period.
“Batting with someone like [Rachael Haynes]who has a level head and calm nature, keeps you in the moment.
“[Getting to the final] It’s really cool. Obviously that’s what we set out to do. It has been at the forefront of our minds and today was just another springboard. I thought the girls were exceptional.
“Now we will see who we face and prepare very well for Sunday. Hopefully we can enjoy the next few days.”
Australia Captain, Meg Lanning: “I’ve been involved in some very stressful semi-finals in the past, so we came in expecting a very tough game, but Healy and Haynes set us up. They showed discipline and dropped a lot of balls and then punished bad balls, which set up the game very well.
“There were some tough moments – the West Indies pitched very well up front and put us under pressure, but we had a good game plan and built a good base. It wasn’t as easy as it looked. We had to work hard.”
