The Australian skipper has executed superb consecutive hundreds to steer her team into the semi-finals of the World Cup, motivating them to a dominant 10-wicket victory over Bangladesh.
The wicketkeeper-batter remained not out on 113, coming just four days after her similarly brilliant 142-run knock that saw off the Indian team at the same Vizag stadium. This time, she shared an undefeated 200-run first-wicket stand with Phoebe Litchfield (84no) to race to their goal of 199 in just under 25 deliveries.
“I felt I was a not at my best with the gloves, and perhaps a bit as skipper as well tonight, but we’ll take the two points and move on,” Healy remarked.
Ironically, the supreme expertise of the day's chase as the duo put on 202 runs came after perhaps Australia’s weakest performance in the field under Healy’s stewardship, with the captain criticizing herself in especial for dropping two 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 batting, and fortunately succeeded,” she added.
From the time statistics was first taken on fielding performance statistics in the year 2013, the six dropped catches marked the team's worst fielding showing at a Women’s World Cup.
“Maybe it’s just that time of the competition – we’ve been here a little while, and it’s an issue we’ll analyze,” the captain said.
It helped Bangladesh to eke out 9-198 after they had opted to bat first, their highest score in an ODI against the Aussies, with Sobhana Mostary compiling the maiden half-century ever for the Asian side against the world champions.
But Alana King mesmeric continuous 10-over spell, in which she claimed two wickets for 18 runs with four maidens, was key to making sure Australia’s chase remained manageable.
Healy Delighted with Victory that Seals Semi-Final Place
Healy was thrilled to discover that the triumph, which places her undefeated side top of the group table on nine points after four wins and a abandoned match, guarantees them a place in the semi-finals. “That's fantastic,” she exclaimed.
The experienced skipper raced to her hundred off just 73 balls, the quickest hundred of the World Cup, and finished with 20 fours off the 77 deliveries she faced as she pulled away from her partner in the latter stages in the knock after they had gone almost boundary-for-boundary towards their fifties.
The Opener Impresses with Maiden World Cup Fifty
The young batter Litchfield hit 12 fours and a six, getting to her first World Cup half-century off 46 deliveries shortly after her partner got there off 43. They went on to record the third-highest stand by any Australian pair at a Women’s World Cup.
Earlier, during the subpar fielding effort, the captain dropped the easiest of edges off a teammate and also failed to hold on to a difficult lofted one off another bowler. Annoyingly, she also did take a clean catch off Brown but didn’t have it reviewed when the umpire turned down their appeal.
The recalled Brown sent down the quickest balls at the World Cup so far but was nonetheless the Aussies’ costliest bowler, going for 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spin Attack Thrive as King Leads
In contrast, the slow bowlers thrived, led by King, whose performance could have been more successful if Beth Mooney hadn’t missed one in the slips.
Other spin bowlers Georgia Wareham (2-22 off seven overs) and Ash Gardner (two for 48 off nine overs) both contributed, while Annabel Sutherland consolidated her standing as the tournament’s leading wicket-taker with her two for 41, taking her tally to thirteen.
A batter's 44 and another's not out 66 runs off 80 balls took Bangladesh to their highest-ever score against the Aussies, but the target was made to look straightforward by a side who had successfully pursued 330 runs against India four days before.
“It's great when you’ve got the ‘Q’ next to your name in a global tournament,” remarked star performer King. “Certainly it doesn’t stop here. We look forward to returning to the next venue to take on the English team and the Proteas.”
