The Australian skipper has delivered superb back-to-back centuries to steer her team into the last four of the Women's Cricket World Cup, motivating them to a dominant 10-wicket win over Bangladesh.
Healy remained unbeaten on 113, arriving 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 unbroken double-century first-wicket stand with Phoebe Litchfield (84 not out) to dash to their target of 199 runs in just 24.5 overs.
“I felt I was a not at my best behind the stumps, and probably a bit as skipper as well tonight, but we’ll accept the two points and progress,” she said.
Ironically, the supreme professionalism of Thursday’s chase as the duo added 202 followed possibly Australia’s shoddiest performance in the field under Healy’s stewardship, with the skipper criticizing herself in especial for spilling two of the six catches that were missed.
“I was a little bit disappointed with my glovework, and I had a little bit to make up for with the bat, and fortunately got the job done,” she added.
From the time data was first taken on fielding performance statistics in the year 2013, the six missed opportunities marked Australia’s poorest fielding showing 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.
This allowed Bangladesh to eke out 9-198 after they had chosen to bat first, their highest score in an ODI against Australia, with Sobhana Mostary compiling the first fifty ever for the Asian side against the reigning champions.
But Alana King mesmeric unbroken 10-over bowling performance, in which she claimed two wickets for 18 runs with four maiden overs, was key to making sure Australia’s chase wasn’t too challenging.
Healy Delighted with Win that Seals Knockout Place
Healy was pleased to discover that the triumph, which places her undefeated side top of the group table on nine points after four victories and a abandoned match, secures them a place in the semi-finals. “That’s really cool,” she said.
The 35-year-old captain sped to her hundred off just 73 balls, the quickest hundred of the tournament, and finished with 20 fours off the 77 deliveries she confronted as she accelerated from Litchfield in the latter stages in the innings after they had gone practically boundary-for-boundary towards their half-centuries.
Litchfield Impresses with First Tournament Half-Century
The young batter Litchfield hit 12 boundaries and a six, reaching to her maiden World Cup half-century off 46 deliveries shortly after Healy got there off 43 balls. They went on to achieve the third-highest stand by any Aussie duo at a World Cup event.
Earlier, during the subpar fielding effort, Healy spilled the simplest of edges off a teammate and also failed to grasp a tough lofted one off another bowler. Annoyingly, she also take a clear catch off Brown but failed to review when the umpire rejected their appeal.
The recalled Darcie Brown sent down the fastest deliveries at the World Cup so far but was nonetheless the Aussies’ costliest bowler, conceding 0-52 off her nine overs.
Spinners Excel as King Stars
In contrast, the slow bowlers excelled, led by King, whose spell could have been even more productive if a fielder hadn’t missed one in the slips.
Fellow spin bowlers Georgia Wareham (two for 22 off seven overs) and Ash Gardner (two for 48 off nine) both chipped in, while Sutherland strengthened her standing as the tournament’s leading wicket-taker with her two for 41, taking her tally to thirteen.
Rubya Haider’s 44 and another's unbeaten 66 runs off 80 deliveries took Bangladesh to their highest-ever score against the Aussies, but the total was rendered straightforward by a team who had successfully pursued 330 against India a few days before.
“It's great when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a global tournament,” said player-of-the-match Alana King. “Certainly it doesn’t stop here. We look forward to returning to the next venue to take on the English team and South Africa.”
