The Australian skipper has produced brilliant back-to-back centuries to guide her squad into the last four of the Women's Cricket World Cup, motivating them to a commanding comprehensive victory over Bangladesh.
Healy remained not out on 113 runs, coming just a few days after her equally brilliant 142-run knock that defeated the Indian team at the identical Visakhapatnam stadium. This time, she combined in an undefeated double-century opening partnership with her opening partner (84no) to race to their goal of 199 runs in just under 25 deliveries.
“I thought I was a little bit poor with the gloves, and probably a little bit as skipper as well today, but we’ll accept the win and move on,” Healy remarked.
Interestingly, the supreme professionalism of Thursday’s run-chase as the pair added 202 followed possibly Australia’s shoddiest performance in the field under the captain's leadership, with the captain criticizing herself in particular for dropping two of the six chances that went down.
“I felt somewhat let down with my wicketkeeping, and I had a little bit to make up for with the bat, and fortunately delivered,” she added.
From the time statistics was initially taken on fielding performance statistics in 2013, the half-dozen dropped opportunities represented Australia’s poorest fielding display at a World Cup tournament.
“Maybe it’s just that time of the competition – we’ve been here a while, and it’s something we’ll analyze,” Healy commented.
This allowed the opposition to manage 198 for 9 after they had opted to bat first, their highest total in an One-Day International against the Aussies, with a key batter scoring the first fifty ever for the Bangladeshi team against the reigning champions.
But the spinner's spellbinding unbroken ten-over bowling performance, in which she took 2-18 with four maiden overs, was crucial to ensuring the team's target wasn’t too challenging.
Healy Delighted with Win that Seals Knockout Place
Healy was thrilled to discover that the victory, which puts her unbeaten side at the top of the group table on nine points after four victories and a abandoned match, guarantees them a berth in the semi-finals. “That’s really cool,” she said.
The experienced skipper sped to her hundred off just 73 balls, the quickest hundred of the tournament, and ended with 20 boundaries off the 77 deliveries she faced as she pulled away from her partner later in the innings after they had gone almost boundary-for-boundary towards their fifties.
Litchfield Shines with Maiden Tournament Fifty
Left-hander Phoebe Litchfield hit 12 fours and one maximum, getting to her first tournament half-century off 46 deliveries soon after Healy reached hers off 43 balls. They went on to achieve the third-best partnership by any Aussie duo 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 grasp a tough lofted one off Annabel Sutherland. Annoyingly, she also take a clear chance off Brown but failed to review when the official turned down their shout.
The reinstated Darcie Brown bowled the quickest balls at the World Cup so far but was still the Aussies’ most expensive bowling option, going for 0-52 off her nine overs.
Spinners Excel as Alana King Leads
In contrast, the spinners excelled, spearheaded by Alana King, whose performance could have been even more productive if a fielder hadn’t missed one in the slips.
Other spin bowlers Wareham (two for 22 off seven) and Gardner (two for 48 off nine) both contributed, while Sutherland consolidated her position as the competition's top wicket-taker with her two for 41, bringing her tally to thirteen.
Rubya Haider’s 44 and Mostary’s unbeaten 66 runs off 80 balls took Bangladesh to their highest-ever score against the Australians, but the total was made to look straightforward by a team who had successfully pursued 330 runs against India a few days earlier.
“It's fantastic when you’ve got the ‘Q’ next to your name in a global tournament,” said player-of-the-match Alana King. “Certainly it won't end here. We anticipate returning to the next venue to take on the English team and the Proteas.”
