The Australian skipper has delivered brilliant consecutive hundreds to guide her team into the semi-finals of the Women's Cricket World Cup, driving them to a commanding comprehensive victory over Bangladesh.
Healy finished not out on 113 runs, coming just four days after her equally stellar 142-run knock that defeated the Indian team at the identical Visakhapatnam venue. This time, she shared an undefeated double-century opening partnership with her opening partner (84no) to race to their goal of 199 runs in just 24.5 deliveries.
“I felt I was a little bit poor behind the stumps, and probably a little bit as skipper as well tonight, but we’ll take the two points and move on,” Healy remarked.
Ironically, the utmost professionalism of the day's run-chase as the duo added 202 runs came after perhaps the team's poorest display in the field under the captain's stewardship, with the captain criticizing herself in especial for spilling two of the six catches that went down.
“I was a little bit disappointed with my wicketkeeping, and I needed to compensate with the batting, and luckily delivered,” Healy continued.
Since data was first taken on fielding performance statistics in 2013, the half-dozen dropped catches marked Australia’s worst fielding display at a Women’s World Cup.
“Perhaps it’s just that time of the tournament – we’ve been here a while, and it’s something we’ll review,” the captain commented.
This allowed the opposition to eke out 198 for 9 after they had chosen to bat, their highest total in an One-Day International against Australia, with a key batter compiling the maiden half-century ever for the Bangladeshi team against the world champions.
But Alana King mesmeric unbroken ten-over bowling performance, in which she took two wickets for 18 runs with four maiden overs, was key to ensuring the team's target remained manageable.
The Captain Pleased with Victory that Confirms Knockout Place
Healy was pleased to learn that the triumph, which puts her undefeated side top of the group table on nine points after four victories and a abandoned match, guarantees them a place in the last-four. “That's fantastic,” she said.
The 35-year-old captain sped to her century off just 73 balls, the fastest hundred of the World Cup, and ended with 20 fours off the 77 deliveries she confronted as she pulled away from Litchfield later in the innings after they had gone practically shot for shot towards their fifties.
The Opener Impresses with Maiden World Cup Half-Century
Left-hander Phoebe Litchfield struck 12 boundaries and one maximum, reaching to her maiden World Cup fifty off 46 balls shortly after her partner reached hers off 43. They went on to record the third-highest stand by any Australian pair 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 hold on to a difficult skied one off another bowler. Annoyingly, she also take a clean catch off the same bowler but didn’t have it reviewed when the umpire rejected their shout.
The recalled Darcie Brown bowled the fastest balls at the tournament so far but was still the team's most expensive bowler, conceding 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spin Attack Excel as Alana King Stars
In contrast, the spinners thrived, led by Alana King, whose spell could have been even more productive if Beth Mooney hadn’t dropped one in the slip cordon.
Fellow spin bowlers Wareham (two for 22 off seven) and Ash Gardner (two for 48 off nine) both chipped in, while Sutherland consolidated her position as the tournament’s top wicket-taker with her two for 41, bringing her tally to 13.
Rubya Haider’s 44 runs and Mostary’s unbeaten 66 runs off 80 deliveries took the team to their record total against the Aussies, but the target was made to look easy meat by a team who had successfully pursued 330 against India four days earlier.
“It’s always nice when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a global tournament,” said player-of-the-match King. “Certainly it doesn’t stop here. We anticipate going back to the next venue to take on England and South Africa.”
