The Australian skipper has delivered brilliant consecutive centuries to guide her squad into the semi-finals of the Women's Cricket World Cup, motivating them to a dominant comprehensive victory over Bangladesh.
Healy finished not out on 113 runs, coming just four days after her similarly brilliant 142-run knock that defeated the Indian team at the same Visakhapatnam stadium. This time, she combined in an undefeated 200-run opening partnership with her opening partner (84no) to chase to their goal of 199 runs in just 24.5 overs.
“I thought I was a not at my best with the gloves, and perhaps a bit as captain as well tonight, but we’ll take the two points and progress,” she said.
Interestingly, the utmost expertise of Thursday’s chase as the duo added 202 runs followed perhaps Australia’s weakest display in the field under Healy’s leadership, with the captain criticizing herself in especial for dropping a couple of the half-dozen chances that went down.
“I felt somewhat let down with my wicketkeeping, and I needed to compensate with the bat, and luckily got the job done,” she added.
Since data was initially taken on fielding statistics in the year 2013, the six missed catches represented the team's worst fielding display at a Women’s World Cup.
“Perhaps it’s just that phase of the competition – we’ve been here a little while, and it’s something we’ll reflect on,” Healy commented.
It helped Bangladesh to eke out 9-198 after they had opted to bat, their highest score in an One-Day International against Australia, with a key batter compiling the maiden fifty ever for the Asian side against the world champions.
But Alana King mesmeric continuous 10-over spell, in which she claimed two wickets for 18 runs with four maidens, was key to making sure Australia’s target remained manageable.
The Captain Pleased with Win that Confirms Knockout Place
Healy was pleased to discover that the victory, which places her unbeaten side at the top of the standings on nine points after four wins and a wash-out, secures them a place in the semi-finals. “That’s really cool,” she said.
The experienced captain sped to her hundred off just 73 deliveries, the fastest hundred of the tournament, and ended with 20 boundaries off the 77 balls she faced as she pulled away from her partner later in the knock after they had gone almost boundary-for-boundary towards their fifties.
Litchfield Shines with First Tournament Half-Century
Left-hander Phoebe Litchfield hit 12 boundaries and one maximum, reaching to her first tournament fifty off 46 balls shortly after Healy got there off 43. They went on to achieve the third-best partnership by any Aussie pair at a World Cup event.
Earlier, during the sluggish fielding display, the captain dropped the easiest of edges off Darcie Brown and also was unable to hold on to a tough skied one off Annabel Sutherland. Annoyingly, she also did take a clear catch off Brown but didn’t have it reviewed when the umpire turned down their appeal.
The reinstated Darcie Brown bowled the quickest deliveries at the tournament so far but was still the Aussies’ most expensive bowler, conceding 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spinners Excel as Alana King Leads
In contrast, the slow bowlers thrived, led by King, whose performance could have been even more productive if Beth Mooney hadn’t missed one in the slips.
Other spin bowlers Wareham (two for 22 off seven overs) and Gardner (2-48 off nine overs) both contributed, while Sutherland consolidated her standing as the tournament’s top wicket-taker with her two for 41, taking her total to 13.
Rubya Haider’s 44 and Mostary’s not out 66 off 80 balls took the team to their record score against the Aussies, but the total was rendered easy meat by a side who had successfully pursued 330 runs against India a few days earlier.
“It's great when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a World Cup,” remarked player-of-the-match Alana King. “Certainly it doesn’t stop here. We anticipate returning to Indore to face the English team and South Africa.”
