NEW DELHI: Australia captain Alyssa Healy lauded India's Jemimah Rodrigues for showing "exceptional" mental strength, admitting that her own team fell short of their usual standards in the Women's ODI World Cup semifinal in Navi Mumbai.

Jemimah's unbeaten 127 - her third ODI century - powered India to a record-breaking chase, as they hunted down 339 to eliminate the seven-time champions and book their place in the final with a stunning five-wicket victory.

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"We were still in it with four or five overs to go. Funny things happen in games of cricket when it gets tight like that. If you can put enough pressure on an opposition, things can unfold, so yeah, she (Jemimah) played really well tonight," Healy replied to the media when asked about the India batter's incredible century on Thursday.

Healy expressed disappointment over Australia's lacklustre bowling display, calling it "junk," and admitted it was uncharacteristic of her team to be so sloppy and error-prone in the field.

"We dished up a little bit too much junk to hit at times and also probably just didn't capitalise on the opportunities that we did create. It sort of feels a little bit un-Australian to be not as clinical as what we normally are... knowing how well we've played this World Cup feels a little bit disappointing sitting here," she said.

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Australia were uncharacteristically sloppy in the field, putting down two crucial chances to dismiss Jemimah on 82 and 106, as India cruised to 341/5 in 48.3 overs.

"We gave her a couple of opportunities which didn't help us, but I thought she played really well. I think her mental resilience out there to get her team over the line was exemplary, so full credit to her," Healy said.

Healy said those dropped catches changed the course of the match.

"It definitely changed the course of the match. Was it semifinal pressure? Maybe. Was it just (lack of) concentration? Was it anything (else)? I'm not sure," she said.

"We could put that down to whatever, but on a pretty decent wicket that seemed to be getting better and better to bat on as the night went on, to create those opportunities that we did and not capitalise, I think was disappointing," she said.

Healy said she was not frustrated with Harmanpreet and Jemimah's vital 167-run partnership for the third wicket but with her bowlers not being able to deliver.

"They're two high-quality cricketers and have been for a long period of time for India. We knew that it's a good wicket, good batting conditions, and we just allowed them into the game a little bit by not sticking to our strengths with the ball for long enough," she said.

"That was probably the most frustrating part. It wasn't so much that it's them out there doing their thing - because we're used to seeing that - and we're used to sort of problem-solving and working it out on the field ourselves to take that wicket and break that partnership.

"So, kudos to them. They played really well, and Harman seems to step up in those big moments when India needs her. She's going to have to do it all again on Sunday to get them over the line," Healy added.

Australia's 15-match unbeaten run in World Cups also ended on Thursday with India's win. Ironically, their previous defeat was also in the semifinal of the 2017 World Cup.

Healy said being put under pressure would reignite the fire in her side to get even better.

"We're playing some unbelievable cricket and that's why it doesn't quite feel right sitting here at the losing end, not sort of getting to Sunday's fixture. It wasn't just one person making all the runs or taking all the wickets," she said.

"The opportunity for some of our players to play in a really high-pressure situation like that is going to do wonders for our group. This same thing happened in 2017," she said.

"We reflected on that and thought we could have done things a little bit better under pressure, where we can be better at little certain aspects of our game moving forward. We made that shift moving forward and we've seen it over the last cycle doing that one in 2022.

"This is just another re-ignition, I suppose, to our group to say we can be better at little moments of the game. But for our group to experience that, to be put under pressure and see how we respond, is going to do great things for us moving forward,” she said.

While Healy welcomed the fact that there will be a new ODI world champion after India and South Africa meet in the final on Sunday, she urged for more one-dayers in the calendar.

"It's a showcase of this tournament. I've heard many people say that this is the closest tournament they've ever played in when it comes to ODI World Cups and I tend to agree," she said.

"To see a new winner is going to do wonders for the game. To see how well it's been supported here in India, first and foremost, it's great for them to be able to have the opportunity to play it at home in front of home fans in an ODI World Cup final is going to be really special," she said.

"I hope we see more one-day cricket on the calendar - that's going to be really important in this cycle... more bilateral series are going to be amazing for the global game and make sure that these World Cups are highly competitive," she added.

(With PTI Inputs)