The Australian skipper has produced outstanding consecutive hundreds to lead her team into the semi-finals of the Women's Cricket World Cup, driving them to a merciless 10-wicket trouncing over Bangladesh.
Healy finished unbeaten on 113 runs, arriving just four days after her similarly stellar 142 that defeated the Indian team at the same Vizag venue. This time, she shared an undefeated double-century first-wicket stand with her opening partner (84 not out) to race to their target of 199 runs in just 24.5 overs.
“I thought I was a not at my best behind the stumps, and probably a little bit as captain as well today, but we’ll accept the win and progress,” Healy remarked.
Interestingly, the supreme expertise of the day's run-chase as the pair added 202 runs followed possibly Australia’s shoddiest display in the fielding department under Healy’s leadership, with the skipper scolding herself in especial for spilling two of the six catches that were missed.
“I felt somewhat let down with my wicketkeeping, and I needed to compensate with the bat, and fortunately delivered,” Healy continued.
From the time data was initially taken on fielding performance metrics in 2013, the half-dozen dropped opportunities represented the team's worst fielding display at a World Cup tournament.
“Maybe 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 eke out 9-198 after they had chosen to bat first, their highest total in an One-Day International against the Aussies, with a key batter scoring the maiden fifty ever for the Asian side against the world champions.
But the spinner's spellbinding unbroken 10-over bowling performance, in which she took two wickets for 18 runs with four maiden overs, was vital to ensuring Australia’s chase wasn’t too challenging.
Healy Delighted with Win that Confirms Knockout Place
The Australian skipper was thrilled to discover that the victory, which puts her undefeated team at the top of the group table on nine points after four victories and a wash-out, guarantees them a berth in the last-four. “That’s really cool,” she said.
The 35-year-old captain sped to her century off just 73 balls, the fastest hundred of the tournament, and ended with 20 fours off the 77 deliveries she faced as she pulled away from her partner later in the innings after they had gone practically boundary-for-boundary towards their half-centuries.
The Opener Shines with Maiden Tournament Fifty
The young batter Phoebe Litchfield hit 12 boundaries and one maximum, getting to her maiden World Cup fifty off 46 balls soon after her partner got there off 43. They went on to record the third-best partnership by any Aussie duo at a World Cup event.
In the first innings, during the subpar fielding effort, the captain dropped the simplest of edges off Darcie Brown and also failed to grasp a difficult lofted one off Annabel Sutherland. Annoyingly, she also did take a clean catch off Brown but didn’t have it reviewed when the official rejected their shout.
The reinstated Darcie Brown sent down the quickest deliveries at the tournament so far but was nonetheless the Aussies’ most expensive bowler, conceding 0-52 off her nine overs.
Spinners Excel as King Leads
Instead, the spinners excelled, led by King, whose spell could have been more successful if a fielder hadn’t missed one in the slips.
Other spin bowlers Wareham (two for 22 off seven overs) and Gardner (two for 48 off nine overs) both contributed, while Annabel Sutherland consolidated her position as the tournament’s leading wicket-taker with her two for 41, taking her total to thirteen.
Rubya Haider’s 44 runs and Mostary’s unbeaten 66 runs off 80 balls took Bangladesh to their record total against the Australians, but the total was made to look easy meat by a side who had chased down 330 runs against India a few days earlier.
“It’s always nice when you’ve got the ‘Q’ next to your name in a global tournament,” said star performer Alana King. “Certainly it won't end here. We look forward to returning to the next venue to take on the English team and South Africa.”
