The Australian skipper has delivered outstanding consecutive centuries to steer her team into the last four of the Women's Cricket World Cup, driving them to a commanding comprehensive trouncing over Bangladesh.
Healy finished not out on 113, coming just four days after her similarly impressive 142 that saw off the Indian team at the same Visakhapatnam venue. This time, she shared an unbroken 200-run first-wicket stand with Phoebe Litchfield (84no) to dash to their goal of 199 in just 24.5 overs.
“I thought I was a below par behind the stumps, and probably a little bit as skipper as well tonight, but we’ll take the win and progress,” Healy remarked.
Ironically, the supreme expertise of the day's run-chase as the duo added 202 followed perhaps Australia’s shoddiest display in the fielding department under the captain's leadership, with the captain criticizing herself in especial 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 batting, and luckily got the job done,” she added.
From the time statistics was first recorded on fielding metrics in 2013, the half-dozen missed catches represented Australia’s worst fielding showing at a World Cup tournament.
“Perhaps it’s just that time of the competition – we’ve been here a while, and it’s an issue we’ll analyze,” Healy said.
This allowed the opposition to manage 198 for 9 after they had chosen to bat first, their highest score in an ODI against Australia, with Sobhana Mostary compiling the maiden half-century ever for the Asian side against the reigning champions.
But Alana King spellbinding continuous 10-over spell, in which she claimed two wickets for 18 runs with four maiden overs, was key to making sure the team's target wasn’t too challenging.
Healy Pleased with Win that Confirms Semi-Final Spot
The Australian skipper was thrilled to discover that the victory, which places her unbeaten side at the top of the group table on nine points after four victories and a wash-out, guarantees them a place in the last-four. “That's great news,” she exclaimed.
The experienced captain 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 Litchfield later in the knock after they had gone practically boundary-for-boundary towards their fifties.
The Opener Impresses with Maiden World Cup Half-Century
The young batter Litchfield struck 12 boundaries and one maximum, reaching to her maiden World Cup half-century off 46 deliveries shortly after Healy got there off 43 balls. They went on to record the third-highest partnership by any Australian duo at a World Cup event.
Earlier, during the subpar fielding display, Healy spilled the easiest of edges off a teammate and also was unable to hold on to a difficult skied one off another bowler. Annoyingly, she also did take a clean chance off the same bowler but didn’t have it reviewed when the official turned down their appeal.
The reinstated Darcie Brown bowled the quickest balls at the tournament so far but was still the Aussies’ costliest bowling option, going for 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spin Attack Excel as Alana King Leads
Instead, the spinners thrived, spearheaded by Alana King, whose performance could have been even more productive if Beth Mooney hadn’t dropped one in the slip cordon.
Fellow spin bowlers Georgia Wareham (two for 22 off seven overs) and Ash Gardner (2-48 off nine overs) both chipped in, while Annabel Sutherland consolidated her standing as the competition's top wicket-taker with her two for 41, bringing her tally to 13.
Rubya Haider’s 44 and Mostary’s unbeaten 66 runs off 80 deliveries took the team to their highest-ever score against the Aussies, but the target was made to look easy meat by a team who had chased down 330 against India a few days before.
“It’s always nice when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a global tournament,” remarked player-of-the-match King. “No doubt it doesn’t stop here. We look forward to going back to Indore to take on England and the Proteas.”
