The Australian skipper has executed brilliant consecutive hundreds to lead her team into the semi-finals of the World Cup, motivating them to a commanding 10-wicket trouncing over Bangladesh.
Healy finished not out on 113, coming just four days after her equally brilliant 142 that defeated hosts India at the identical Visakhapatnam stadium. This time, she combined in an unbroken 200-run opening partnership with Phoebe Litchfield (84 not out) to race to their target of 199 runs in just 24.5 deliveries.
“I felt I was a little bit poor behind the stumps, and perhaps a bit as captain as well tonight, but we’ll accept the win and move on,” she said.
Interestingly, the supreme expertise of Thursday’s run-chase as the pair put on 202 runs came after possibly the team's weakest display in the fielding department under the captain's stewardship, with the captain scolding herself in particular for spilling a couple of the six chances that were missed.
“I felt somewhat let down with my glovework, and I had a little bit to make up for with the bat, and fortunately got the job done,” Healy continued.
Since data was first recorded on fielding statistics in the year 2013, the six missed catches represented Australia’s worst fielding display at a Women’s World Cup.
“Perhaps it’s just that time of the tournament – we’ve been here a while, and it’s an issue we’ll review,” Healy said.
This allowed Bangladesh to manage 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 maiden fifty ever for the Bangladeshi team against the reigning champions.
But Alana King spellbinding unbroken 10-over spell, in which she claimed two wickets for 18 runs with four maidens, was crucial to making sure Australia’s chase wasn’t too challenging.
Healy Delighted with Win that Confirms Semi-Final Spot
Healy was pleased to learn that the victory, which puts her undefeated side top of the standings on nine points after four victories and a wash-out, guarantees them a place in the semi-finals. “That’s really cool,” she exclaimed.
The experienced skipper raced to her century off just 73 balls, the quickest century of the tournament, and finished with 20 fours off the 77 deliveries she confronted as she pulled away from Litchfield in the latter stages in the knock after they had gone almost shot for shot towards their fifties.
The Opener Impresses with First Tournament Half-Century
The young batter Phoebe Litchfield hit 12 fours and a six, getting to her maiden World Cup half-century off 46 balls shortly after her partner reached hers off 43. They went on to record the third-best partnership by any Aussie pair at a World Cup event.
In the first innings, during the subpar fielding effort, the captain dropped the simplest of chances off Darcie Brown and also was unable to grasp a difficult skied one off Annabel Sutherland. Annoyingly, she also take a clean chance off Brown but failed to review when the umpire turned down their appeal.
The reinstated Darcie Brown bowled the quickest deliveries at the World Cup so far but was still the team's most expensive bowler, going for 0-52 off her nine overs.
Spinners Thrive as King Leads
Instead, the slow bowlers thrived, spearheaded by King, whose performance could have been more successful if Beth Mooney hadn’t dropped one in the slips.
Other spinners Georgia Wareham (two for 22 off seven) and Gardner (2-48 off nine) both chipped in, while Annabel Sutherland strengthened her position as the tournament’s leading wicket-taker with her two for 41, bringing her tally to 13.
A batter's 44 and another's not out 66 runs off 80 deliveries took Bangladesh to their highest-ever total against the Australians, but the target was made to look straightforward by a team who had successfully pursued 330 against the Indian side a few days earlier.
“It’s always nice when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a World Cup,” remarked player-of-the-match King. “Certainly it won't end here. We anticipate returning to Indore to take on the English team and South Africa.”
