The Australian skipper has delivered outstanding back-to-back hundreds to lead her team into the semi-finals of the World Cup, motivating them to a merciless 10-wicket victory over their opponents.
The wicketkeeper-batter remained unbeaten on 113, coming just four days after her similarly brilliant 142-run knock that saw off hosts India at the same Visakhapatnam stadium. This time, she combined in an unbroken double-century opening partnership with Phoebe Litchfield (84no) to race to their target of 199 runs in just under 25 deliveries.
“I felt I was a below par with the gloves, and perhaps a little bit as skipper as well today, but we’ll accept the win and progress,” Healy remarked.
Interestingly, the supreme expertise of Thursday’s run-chase as the pair added 202 came after perhaps Australia’s poorest performance in the field under the captain's leadership, with the skipper criticizing herself in especial for dropping two of the half-dozen chances that went down.
“I was a little bit disappointed with my glovework, and I needed to compensate with the bat, and fortunately got the job done,” she added.
From the time statistics was first recorded on fielding performance statistics in the year 2013, the six dropped catches marked Australia’s worst fielding showing 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 reflect on,” the captain commented.
It helped the opposition to eke out 9-198 after they had chosen to bat, their highest score in an ODI against the Aussies, with a key batter compiling the first fifty ever for the Asian side against the reigning champions.
But the spinner's mesmeric 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.
Healy Delighted with Victory that Seals Knockout Place
Healy was delighted to learn that the triumph, which places her undefeated side at the top of the standings on nine points after four victories and a wash-out, guarantees them a berth in the semi-finals. “That’s really cool,” she exclaimed.
The experienced captain sped to her century off just 73 deliveries, the quickest hundred of the World Cup, and ended with 20 fours off the 77 balls she confronted as she pulled away from Litchfield later in the knock after they had gone practically boundary-for-boundary towards their half-centuries.
The Opener Shines with Maiden World Cup Fifty
Left-hander Phoebe Litchfield struck 12 fours and a six, reaching to her maiden World Cup fifty off 46 deliveries shortly after Healy reached hers off 43 balls. They went on to record the third-best partnership by any Australian duo at a World Cup event.
In the first innings, during the sluggish fielding effort, the captain spilled the easiest of chances off Darcie Brown and also was unable to grasp a tough skied one off Annabel Sutherland. Annoyingly, she also take a clean catch off Brown but didn’t have it reviewed when the official turned down their shout.
The reinstated Darcie Brown bowled the quickest deliveries at the World Cup so far but was still the team's costliest bowler, conceding 0-52 off her nine overs.
Spinners Thrive as King Leads
In contrast, the slow bowlers excelled, spearheaded by Alana King, whose spell could have been even more productive if Beth Mooney hadn’t missed one in the slip cordon.
Fellow spin bowlers Wareham (2-22 off seven) and Ash Gardner (2-48 off nine overs) both contributed, while Annabel Sutherland strengthened her position as the competition's leading wicket-taker with her 2-41, bringing her total to thirteen.
Rubya Haider’s 44 and another's unbeaten 66 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 India a few days before.
“It's great when you’ve got the ‘Q’ next to your name in a World Cup,” said star performer King. “No doubt it doesn’t stop here. We anticipate returning to Indore to take on England and South Africa.”
