The Australian skipper has produced outstanding consecutive hundreds to lead her squad into the last four of the World Cup, motivating them to a merciless comprehensive win over their opponents.
Healy finished not out on 113, coming just a few days after her equally stellar 142 that saw off hosts India at the identical Vizag venue. This time, she combined in an undefeated 200-run opening partnership with Phoebe Litchfield (84 not out) to race to their goal of 199 runs in just 24.5 overs.
“I thought I was a little bit poor behind the stumps, and perhaps a bit as captain as well today, but we’ll accept the win and progress,” Healy remarked.
Ironically, the utmost expertise of Thursday’s run-chase as the pair put on 202 runs followed possibly Australia’s weakest performance in the field under Healy’s leadership, with the captain scolding herself in especial for spilling a couple of the half-dozen chances that went down.
“I was a little bit disappointed with my wicketkeeping, and I needed to compensate with the batting, and fortunately delivered,” Healy continued.
Since statistics was first recorded on fielding metrics in the year 2013, the six dropped opportunities represented Australia’s poorest fielding display at a World Cup tournament.
“Maybe it’s just that phase of the tournament – we’ve been here a while, and it’s something we’ll review,” Healy said.
It helped the opposition to eke out 198 for 9 after they had opted to bat, their best-ever score in an One-Day International against the Aussies, with a key batter compiling the first fifty ever for the Asian side against the world champions.
But the spinner's spellbinding unbroken ten-over spell, in which she took two wickets for 18 runs with four maidens, was crucial to making sure the team's chase wasn’t too challenging.
Healy Delighted with Victory that Seals Knockout Spot
Healy was pleased to discover that the victory, which puts her undefeated team at the top of the group table on nine points after four wins and a abandoned match, secures them a berth in the last-four. “That's fantastic,” she said.
The experienced skipper raced to her hundred off just 73 balls, the fastest century of the World Cup, and finished with 20 fours off the 77 deliveries she confronted as she pulled away from Litchfield in the latter stages in the innings after they had gone almost boundary-for-boundary towards their half-centuries.
The Opener Impresses with First World Cup Fifty
The young batter Phoebe Litchfield hit 12 boundaries and one maximum, getting to her maiden tournament fifty off 46 deliveries soon after Healy reached hers off 43. They went on to achieve the third-best partnership by any Aussie duo at a Women’s World Cup.
In the first innings, during the subpar fielding effort, Healy spilled the simplest of chances off a teammate and also was unable to grasp a tough lofted one off Annabel Sutherland. Annoyingly, she also did take a clean chance off the same bowler but didn’t have it reviewed when the umpire turned down their appeal.
The recalled Darcie Brown bowled the quickest balls at the World Cup so far but was still the Aussies’ most expensive bowling option, conceding 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spin Attack Excel as Alana King Stars
In contrast, the slow bowlers excelled, spearheaded by Alana King, whose spell could have been more successful if a fielder hadn’t missed one in the slip cordon.
Fellow spin bowlers Wareham (2-22 off seven) and Ash Gardner (2-48 off nine) both contributed, while Sutherland consolidated her standing as the competition's top wicket-taker with her two for 41, bringing her tally to 13.
Rubya Haider’s 44 and Mostary’s not out 66 off 80 balls took Bangladesh to their record total against the Aussies, but the total was made to look easy meat by a team who had successfully pursued 330 runs against India four days before.
“It's great when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a global tournament,” remarked star performer Alana King. “Certainly it won't end here. We look forward to returning to Indore to take on the English team and South Africa.”
