The Australian skipper has delivered outstanding back-to-back centuries to guide her team into the last four of the Women's Cricket World Cup, motivating them to a dominant 10-wicket win over Bangladesh.
Healy finished unbeaten on 113 runs, coming just four days after her similarly stellar 142-run knock that saw off the Indian team at the identical Visakhapatnam venue. This time, she combined in an unbroken 200-run first-wicket stand with her opening partner (84no) to chase to their goal of 199 in just under 25 overs.
“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,” she said.
Interestingly, the utmost expertise of Thursday’s chase as the duo put on 202 runs followed perhaps the team's poorest display in the fielding department under the captain's stewardship, with the skipper scolding herself in particular for dropping a couple of the half-dozen chances that went down.
“I felt somewhat let down with my wicketkeeping, and I needed to compensate with the bat, and luckily succeeded,” she added.
Since data was first recorded on fielding metrics in the year 2013, the half-dozen dropped opportunities marked Australia’s poorest fielding display at a World Cup tournament.
“Perhaps it’s just that time of the tournament – we’ve been here a little while, and it’s an issue we’ll reflect on,” the captain commented.
It helped Bangladesh to eke out 9-198 after they had chosen to bat, their best-ever total in an ODI against the Aussies, with a key batter compiling the first half-century ever for the Asian side against the world champions.
But Alana King spellbinding continuous ten-over bowling performance, in which she claimed 2-18 with four maiden overs, was vital to ensuring the team's chase remained manageable.
The Captain Delighted with Victory that Seals Semi-Final Spot
Healy was pleased to learn that the victory, which places her unbeaten side top of the group table on nine points after four victories and a abandoned match, secures them a place in the last-four. “That's great news,” she exclaimed.
The 35-year-old skipper sped to her century off just 73 deliveries, the quickest hundred of the tournament, and finished with 20 boundaries off the 77 balls she confronted as she pulled away from her partner later in the innings after they had gone practically shot for shot towards their fifties.
Litchfield Shines with First World Cup Half-Century
The young batter Phoebe Litchfield struck 12 boundaries and a six, getting to her first tournament fifty off 46 balls soon after her partner reached hers off 43. They went on to record the third-highest partnership by any Aussie pair at a Women’s World Cup.
Earlier, during the subpar fielding display, the captain spilled the easiest of edges off a teammate and also failed to hold on to a tough skied one off Annabel Sutherland. Annoyingly, she also take a clean chance off the same bowler but didn’t have it reviewed when the umpire turned down their appeal.
The reinstated Brown sent down the fastest balls at the tournament so far but was nonetheless the Aussies’ costliest bowler, conceding 0-52 off her nine overs.
Spinners Thrive as King Stars
Instead, the slow bowlers excelled, spearheaded by Alana King, whose performance could have been more successful if a fielder hadn’t dropped one in the slips.
Fellow spinners Georgia Wareham (two for 22 off seven) and Ash Gardner (2-48 off nine) both chipped in, while Annabel Sutherland consolidated her position as the tournament’s top wicket-taker with her two for 41, taking her total to 13.
A batter's 44 and another's unbeaten 66 off 80 balls took Bangladesh to their record total against the Australians, but the target was rendered straightforward by a side who had chased down 330 runs against India four days earlier.
“It's fantastic when you’ve got the ‘Q’ next to your name in a global tournament,” remarked star performer Alana King. “Certainly it won't end here. We look forward to going back to Indore to take on the English team and the Proteas.”
