The Australian skipper has executed outstanding back-to-back hundreds to steer her squad into the semi-finals of the Women's Cricket World Cup, driving them to a commanding comprehensive win over Bangladesh.
Healy finished not out on 113, arriving just a few days after her similarly brilliant 142-run knock that defeated the Indian team at the identical Visakhapatnam venue. This time, she combined in an unbroken 200-run opening partnership with Phoebe Litchfield (84 not out) to chase to their goal of 199 runs in just under 25 deliveries.
“I felt I was a not at my best behind the stumps, and perhaps a bit as captain as well today, but we’ll accept the win and progress,” Healy remarked.
Ironically, the utmost expertise of the day's chase as the pair put on 202 came after possibly the team's weakest performance in the fielding department under Healy’s leadership, with the captain criticizing herself in particular for dropping a couple of the half-dozen catches that went down.
“I was a little bit disappointed with my glovework, and I had a little bit to make up for with the batting, and fortunately delivered,” Healy continued.
Since statistics was initially recorded on fielding performance statistics in the year 2013, the six dropped catches marked Australia’s worst fielding display at a World Cup tournament.
“Maybe it’s just that phase of the tournament – we’ve been here a while, and it’s something we’ll reflect on,” Healy commented.
It helped Bangladesh to eke out 198 for 9 after they had opted to bat, their best-ever score in an ODI against Australia, with a key batter compiling the first fifty ever for the Bangladeshi team against the reigning champions.
But Alana King spellbinding continuous 10-over spell, in which she claimed two wickets for 18 runs with four maiden overs, was crucial to ensuring the team's target wasn’t too challenging.
The Captain Delighted with Victory that Confirms Knockout Place
The Australian skipper was thrilled to learn that the victory, which places her unbeaten team top of the group table on nine points after four wins and a abandoned match, guarantees them a berth in the semi-finals. “That's great news,” she said.
The experienced captain raced to her century off just 73 balls, the quickest century of the World Cup, and finished with 20 boundaries off the 77 deliveries she faced as she pulled away from Litchfield later in the knock after they had gone practically boundary-for-boundary towards their fifties.
Litchfield Impresses with Maiden World Cup Half-Century
Left-hander Litchfield struck 12 fours and a six, reaching to her maiden tournament fifty off 46 deliveries shortly after Healy got there off 43. They went on to record the third-highest partnership by any Australian duo at a Women’s World Cup.
In the first innings, during the sluggish fielding display, the captain spilled the easiest of edges off a teammate and also failed to grasp a tough lofted one off Annabel Sutherland. Frustratingly, she also did take a clean catch off the same bowler but didn’t have it reviewed when the official rejected their appeal.
The reinstated Brown sent down the fastest deliveries at the tournament so far but was still the team's most expensive bowler, conceding 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spinners Thrive as Alana King Leads
Instead, the slow bowlers thrived, spearheaded by Alana King, whose performance could have been even more productive if Beth Mooney hadn’t dropped one in the slip cordon.
Fellow spin bowlers Wareham (2-22 off seven) and Ash Gardner (2-48 off nine overs) both contributed, while Sutherland strengthened her position as the tournament’s top wicket-taker with her two for 41, taking her tally to 13.
A batter's 44 runs and Mostary’s unbeaten 66 off 80 deliveries took the team to their highest-ever total against the Aussies, but the total was made to look easy meat by a team who had successfully pursued 330 runs against India four days earlier.
“It’s always nice when you’ve got the ‘Q’ next to your name in a global tournament,” remarked player-of-the-match Alana King. “Certainly it won't end here. We look forward to returning to the next venue to face England and the Proteas.”
