No slouch with the bat, Alana King played a defining role in Thursday’s ODI series opener against Bangladesh at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium. The world champions romped to a 1-0 series lead with an emphatic 118-run win over the hosts as they bundled out their opposition for just 95.
Australia had recovered spectacularly to post 213 after being reduced to 78/5 at one point. They were rescued by Annabel Sutherland’s unbeaten 58 along with King’s belligerent 31-ball 46, a knock that included a 29-run assault on Fahima Khatun in the innings’ last over.
In the process, King, broke the record for most sixes in an innings for Australia, surpassing Shelly Nitschke’s four. ”Not so much pre-planned. It’s a last over and we can go for as maximum or as many runs as possible. And I’m glad that I connected a few,” she exclaimed after Australia’s jumbo win.
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Alana King finishes the innings in style!
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.#BANvAUS #FanCode pic.twitter.com/7RIj7N3gwL— FanCode (@FanCode) March 21, 2024
King earned her first national contract by Cricket Australia in April 2022 following a prolific season that featured the Ashes and the T20 World Cup. King made her debut during the Women’s Ashes and made an instant impact, even bagging an upgrade during the series. Players without a CA contract can fetch upgrades throughout the year by accruing 12 upgrade points – four points for a Test match, two for an ODI and two for a T20I.
Meanwhile, Nahida Akhter opined that Bangladesh were poor with the ball as it helped their opposition to stage a comeback despite being pushed into a corner at one juncture. “The difference is that we bowled badly and we can do better than this,” the losing captain told reporters.
