The Australian skipper has delivered superb consecutive centuries to steer her team into the last four of the World Cup, driving them to a dominant 10-wicket victory over Bangladesh.
Healy remained unbeaten on 113 runs, coming just a few days after her similarly stellar 142 that defeated the Indian team at the same Visakhapatnam stadium. This time, she combined in an unbroken double-century first-wicket stand with Phoebe Litchfield (84 not out) to race to their goal of 199 runs in just under 25 overs.
“I felt I was a not at my best with the gloves, and probably a bit as skipper as well tonight, but we’ll take the win and progress,” Healy remarked.
Ironically, the supreme professionalism of Thursday’s chase as the pair put on 202 came after possibly Australia’s poorest performance in the field under Healy’s stewardship, with the skipper criticizing herself in particular for dropping two of the half-dozen chances 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 succeeded,” Healy continued.
Since data was initially recorded on fielding performance metrics in the year 2013, the half-dozen dropped catches represented Australia’s poorest fielding showing at a World Cup tournament.
“Perhaps it’s just that time of the tournament – we’ve been here a while, and it’s something we’ll reflect on,” Healy commented.
It helped Bangladesh to manage 198 for 9 after they had chosen to bat first, their best-ever score in an One-Day International against Australia, with Sobhana Mostary compiling the maiden half-century ever for the Asian side against the reigning champions.
But Alana King spellbinding continuous 10-over spell, in which she took two wickets for 18 runs with four maiden overs, was crucial to ensuring the team's chase wasn’t too challenging.
The Captain Pleased with Victory that Seals Semi-Final Place
Healy was delighted to learn that the triumph, which places her unbeaten team top of the standings on nine points after four victories and a abandoned match, secures them a berth in the last-four. “That's fantastic,” she said.
The 35-year-old skipper raced to her hundred off just 73 deliveries, the quickest century of the tournament, and finished with 20 fours off the 77 balls she confronted as she pulled away from Litchfield later in the innings after they had gone almost boundary-for-boundary towards their half-centuries.
The Opener Impresses with First Tournament Half-Century
The young batter Litchfield hit 12 fours and a six, reaching to her maiden World Cup half-century off 46 balls soon after her partner reached hers off 43 balls. They went on to achieve the third-best partnership by any Aussie pair at a Women’s World Cup.
In the first innings, during the sluggish fielding display, the captain spilled the simplest of chances off a teammate and also was unable to grasp a tough skied one off another bowler. Annoyingly, she also take a clean catch off the same bowler but didn’t have it reviewed when the umpire rejected their shout.
The reinstated Darcie Brown sent down the fastest deliveries at the tournament so far but was still the Aussies’ costliest bowling option, conceding 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spinners Excel as Alana King Leads
Instead, the slow bowlers thrived, spearheaded by Alana King, whose performance could have been more successful if Beth Mooney hadn’t missed one in the slip cordon.
Other spinners Georgia Wareham (2-22 off seven) and Gardner (2-48 off nine overs) both contributed, while Annabel Sutherland strengthened her standing as the competition's leading wicket-taker with her 2-41, bringing her tally to thirteen.
A batter's 44 runs and Mostary’s unbeaten 66 runs off 80 deliveries took the team to their record total against the Aussies, but the target was rendered straightforward by a side who had chased down 330 runs against India a few days earlier.
“It’s always nice when you’ve got the ‘Q’ next to your name in a global tournament,” remarked star performer King. “No doubt it won't end here. We look forward to returning to Indore to take on the English team and the Proteas.”
