The Australian skipper has produced superb back-to-back centuries to guide her team into the semi-finals of the Women's Cricket World Cup, driving them to a dominant 10-wicket trouncing over Bangladesh.
The wicketkeeper-batter finished not out on 113 runs, arriving just four days after her equally impressive 142 that saw off the Indian team at the same Visakhapatnam stadium. This time, she combined in an unbroken 200-run opening partnership with Phoebe Litchfield (84no) to dash to their target of 199 in just under 25 deliveries.
“I thought I was a little bit poor with the gloves, and probably a little bit as skipper as well tonight, but we’ll take the win and progress,” Healy remarked.
Interestingly, the supreme expertise of Thursday’s chase as the duo put on 202 runs followed possibly Australia’s weakest display in the fielding department under the captain's leadership, with the captain criticizing herself in particular for dropping two of the half-dozen catches that went down.
“I felt somewhat let down with my wicketkeeping, and I needed to compensate with the batting, and fortunately succeeded,” Healy continued.
Since statistics was initially recorded on fielding performance metrics in the year 2013, the six dropped catches marked the team'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,” the captain said.
It helped the opposition to manage 198 for 9 after they had chosen to bat, their best-ever score in an One-Day International against the Aussies, with a key batter compiling the maiden fifty ever for the Bangladeshi team against the world champions.
But the spinner's spellbinding continuous 10-over bowling performance, in which she claimed 2-18 with four maidens, was vital to ensuring Australia’s chase wasn’t too challenging.
The Captain Pleased with Win that Confirms Knockout Place
The Australian skipper was pleased to discover that the triumph, which puts her undefeated side at the top of the standings on nine points after four victories and a abandoned match, guarantees them a place in the semi-finals. “That's great news,” she said.
The 35-year-old skipper raced to her hundred off just 73 deliveries, the quickest century of the World Cup, and finished with 20 fours off the 77 balls she faced as she pulled away from her partner later in the innings after they had gone practically shot for shot towards their half-centuries.
Litchfield Impresses with First World Cup Half-Century
Left-hander Litchfield struck 12 boundaries and one maximum, reaching to her first tournament fifty off 46 balls soon after Healy got there off 43 balls. They went on to record the third-best partnership by any Australian pair at a Women’s World Cup.
Earlier, during the subpar fielding effort, Healy spilled the easiest of chances off Darcie Brown and also was unable to grasp a tough lofted one off another bowler. Frustratingly, she also take a clean catch off Brown but didn’t have it reviewed 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’ most expensive bowling option, going for 0-52 off her nine overs.
Spin Attack Thrive as Alana King Stars
In contrast, the spinners thrived, spearheaded by Alana King, whose spell could have been even more productive if Beth Mooney hadn’t missed one in the slip cordon.
Fellow spin bowlers Georgia Wareham (2-22 off seven) and Gardner (two for 48 off nine) both chipped in, while Annabel Sutherland consolidated her standing as the competition's leading wicket-taker with her 2-41, taking her tally to 13.
A batter's 44 runs and Mostary’s unbeaten 66 runs off 80 deliveries took Bangladesh to their record total against the Aussies, but the target was rendered straightforward by a side who had successfully pursued 330 runs against the Indian side four days before.
“It's great when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a World Cup,” said player-of-the-match King. “No doubt it doesn’t stop here. We anticipate going back to Indore to face England and the Proteas.”
