Australia stormed into the Women’s World Cup semifinals in commanding style, riding on a record-breaking spell from Alana King, who claimed 7 for 18 to script a seven-wicket win over South Africa at the Holkar Stadium in Indore on Saturday.
King’s magical performance — the first-ever seven-wicket haul in Women’s World Cup history — dismantled South Africa for a paltry 97 in just 24 overs and sealed Australia’s fifth straight victory, ensuring they topped the league table with 13 points from seven matches.
The reigning champions will now meet hosts India in a high-voltage semifinal clash at the DY Patil Stadium in Navi Mumbai on October 30.
King’s Spell Of Destruction
Put in to bat, South Africa made a steady start through Laura Wolvaardt and Tazmin Brits, who added 32 for the opening wicket before Megan Schutt removed Wolvaardt for 31. Once Alana King entered the attack, the game turned on its head.
The leg-spinner struck twice in her first over, removing Sune Luus and Marizanne Kapp to trigger a collapse from which South Africa never recovered.
She was very good. That was pretty awesome. It just felt like, get the ball in her hands and something was going to happen — and that certainly did today. Every ball looked like a wicket. Super happy for her — a really special performance.
King kept attacking relentlessly, taking wickets in clusters. She removed Annerie Dercksen and Chloe Tryon off successive balls before bowling Sinalo Jafta for 29 to complete her five-for. The tail folded quickly, with King finishing on 7 for 18 in seven overs, including two maidens — a spell for the ages.
She’s been our X-factor. As soon as the powerplay ended, I had a quick chat with Ash (Gardner), and we both agreed to bring her on. She took over and did the rest.
Voll, Mooney Seal The Deal
Chasing 98, Australia suffered early jitters as Phoebe Litchfield (5) and Ellyse Perry (0) fell cheaply to Kapp and Klaas. But Georgia Voll (38 not out off 33) and Beth Mooney (42) stitched together a fluent 76-run stand to ensure there were no further hiccups.
It was awesome to get the job done and walk away with some momentum heading into the semifinals. We’ve played a lot against India, and at that ground — anything can happen in knockout games, but we’re excited for it.
Australia cruised home in 16.5 overs, wrapping up another dominant performance in their march toward the title.
South Africa Look To Regroup
Despite the heavy defeat, South Africa, who face England in the first semifinal in Guwahati on October 29, remain upbeat.
Definitely not how we wanted to finish the group stages. We didn’t have enough runs on the board, but there have been plenty of positives. King bowled excellently — we spoke about facing her a lot, but that didn’t quite go to plan.
Brief Scores: South Africa 97 all out in 24 overs (Laura Wolvaardt 31, Sinalo Jafta 29; Alana King 7-18) Australia 98/3 in 16.5 overs (Beth Mooney 42, Georgia Voll 38*; Marizanne Kapp 1-11, Nadine de Klerk 1-13) Australia won by seven wickets.
