The Australian skipper has delivered superb back-to-back hundreds to lead her squad into the semi-finals of the Women's Cricket World Cup, driving them to a dominant 10-wicket trouncing over Bangladesh.
The wicketkeeper-batter finished not out on 113 runs, coming just four days after her equally brilliant 142 that defeated the Indian team at the same Vizag venue. This time, she shared an undefeated 200-run opening partnership with Phoebe Litchfield (84no) to dash to their goal of 199 in just under 25 deliveries.
“I thought I was a little bit poor with the gloves, and probably a little bit as captain as well tonight, but we’ll accept the win and progress,” Healy remarked.
Interestingly, the supreme professionalism of the day's chase as the duo put on 202 runs followed perhaps the team's shoddiest performance in the fielding department under the captain's stewardship, with the skipper scolding herself in especial for dropping a couple of the half-dozen catches that were missed.
“I was a little bit disappointed with my glovework, and I needed to compensate with the batting, and luckily got the job done,” Healy continued.
From the time statistics was initially taken on fielding performance metrics in the year 2013, the six missed catches marked the team's poorest fielding showing at a World Cup tournament.
“Perhaps it’s just that phase of the competition – we’ve been here a while, and it’s something we’ll review,” Healy commented.
It helped Bangladesh to eke out 9-198 after they had chosen to bat first, their highest total in an ODI against the Aussies, with a key batter compiling the first half-century ever for the Bangladeshi team against the world champions.
But Alana King mesmeric unbroken ten-over spell, in which she took 2-18 with four maiden overs, was vital to ensuring Australia’s target wasn’t too challenging.
Healy Pleased with Win that Seals Knockout Spot
Healy was thrilled to discover that the triumph, which places her unbeaten team at the top of the group table on nine points after four wins and a abandoned match, guarantees them a berth in the last-four. “That's fantastic,” she said.
The experienced captain raced to her century off just 73 deliveries, the fastest century of the World Cup, and finished with 20 boundaries off the 77 deliveries she confronted as she accelerated from her partner in the latter stages in the knock after they had gone almost boundary-for-boundary towards their half-centuries.
The Opener Shines with First World Cup Half-Century
Left-hander Litchfield struck 12 fours and one maximum, reaching to her first World Cup half-century off 46 balls soon after Healy reached hers off 43 balls. They went on to achieve the third-highest stand by any Aussie pair at a World Cup event.
In the first innings, during the sluggish fielding display, the captain dropped the easiest of edges off Darcie Brown and also failed to grasp a difficult skied 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 Brown sent down the quickest deliveries at the World Cup so far but was still the Aussies’ costliest bowler, going for 0-52 off her nine overs.
Spinners Excel as Alana King Stars
In contrast, the spinners thrived, led by King, whose spell could have been even more productive if Beth Mooney hadn’t missed one in the slip cordon.
Fellow spin bowlers Georgia Wareham (2-22 off seven overs) and Ash Gardner (2-48 off nine) both contributed, while Sutherland strengthened her position as the tournament’s top wicket-taker with her two for 41, taking her total to thirteen.
A batter's 44 runs and Mostary’s unbeaten 66 runs off 80 deliveries took the team to their highest-ever total against the Australians, but the target was rendered straightforward by a side who had chased down 330 against the Indian side four days earlier.
“It's great when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a World Cup,” remarked player-of-the-match Alana King. “Certainly it won't end here. We anticipate going back to the next venue to take on England and South Africa.”
