The Australian skipper has executed superb consecutive centuries to guide her team into the last four of the Women's Cricket World Cup, inspiring them to a merciless 10-wicket win over Bangladesh.
Healy remained unbeaten on 113 runs, arriving just four days after her similarly impressive 142 that defeated the Indian team at the same Vizag stadium. This time, she combined in an undefeated double-century first-wicket stand with her opening partner (84no) to dash to their goal of 199 in just 24.5 deliveries.
“I felt I was a little bit poor with the gloves, and perhaps a little bit as skipper as well today, but we’ll accept the two points and move on,” she said.
Ironically, the utmost professionalism of Thursday’s chase as the pair added 202 runs followed perhaps the team's shoddiest display in the fielding department under Healy’s leadership, with the captain scolding herself in particular for dropping a couple of the half-dozen catches that were missed.
“I felt somewhat let down with my glovework, and I had a little bit to make up for with the batting, and luckily delivered,” she added.
Since data was first taken on fielding statistics in 2013, the half-dozen missed opportunities marked Australia’s poorest fielding showing at a Women’s World Cup.
“Maybe it’s just that phase of the tournament – we’ve been here a little while, and it’s something we’ll analyze,” Healy said.
This allowed Bangladesh to manage 9-198 after they had chosen to bat, their best-ever score in an One-Day International against Australia, with a key batter scoring the first fifty ever for the Asian side against the reigning champions.
But the spinner's mesmeric continuous 10-over bowling performance, in which she took two wickets for 18 runs with four maiden overs, was crucial to ensuring the team's chase remained manageable.
The Captain Pleased with Victory that Confirms Semi-Final Spot
Healy was pleased to discover that the victory, which puts her undefeated team at the top of the standings on nine points after four victories and a abandoned match, secures them a berth in the semi-finals. “That’s really cool,” she exclaimed.
The experienced captain sped to her century off just 73 balls, the fastest century of the tournament, and ended with 20 boundaries off the 77 deliveries she faced as she accelerated from Litchfield later in the knock after they had gone almost boundary-for-boundary towards their half-centuries.
The Opener Shines with Maiden World Cup Fifty
The young batter Litchfield struck 12 fours and one maximum, getting to her maiden tournament fifty off 46 deliveries shortly after Healy reached hers off 43. They went on to record the third-best stand by any Aussie duo at a World Cup event.
In the first innings, during the sluggish fielding effort, the captain spilled the easiest of edges off a teammate and also was unable to grasp a tough lofted one off Annabel Sutherland. Annoyingly, she also did take a clear catch off the same bowler but failed to review when the umpire rejected their appeal.
The reinstated Darcie Brown bowled the fastest balls at the World Cup so far but was still the Aussies’ costliest bowling option, conceding 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spin Attack Thrive as Alana King Stars
Instead, the spinners thrived, spearheaded by Alana King, whose performance could have been more successful if Beth Mooney hadn’t missed one in the slips.
Fellow spin bowlers Georgia Wareham (two for 22 off seven overs) and Ash Gardner (2-48 off nine overs) both contributed, while Sutherland strengthened her position as the competition's top wicket-taker with her 2-41, taking her tally to 13.
Rubya Haider’s 44 runs and Mostary’s unbeaten 66 runs off 80 deliveries took the team to their record total against the Aussies, but the total was made to look easy meat by a side who had successfully pursued 330 runs against the Indian side four days earlier.
“It's fantastic when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a World Cup,” said player-of-the-match Alana King. “Certainly it won't end here. We anticipate going back to Indore to face the English team and the Proteas.”
