The Australian skipper has produced outstanding consecutive hundreds to guide her team into the semi-finals of the Women's Cricket World Cup, driving them to a merciless 10-wicket trouncing over Bangladesh.
Healy finished unbeaten on 113, arriving just four days after her similarly brilliant 142 that defeated hosts India at the same Visakhapatnam venue. This time, she shared an unbroken 200-run opening partnership with Phoebe Litchfield (84 not out) to dash to their goal of 199 runs in just under 25 deliveries.
“I felt I was a not at my best with the gloves, and perhaps a little bit as captain as well today, but we’ll take the win and move on,” she said.
Ironically, the supreme expertise of the day's run-chase as the pair put on 202 runs came after possibly the team's weakest performance in the fielding department under the captain's stewardship, with the captain criticizing herself in especial for dropping two of the half-dozen catches that were missed.
“I was a little bit disappointed with my glovework, and I had a little bit to make up for with the bat, and luckily got the job done,” Healy continued.
Since statistics was initially recorded on fielding performance metrics in 2013, the six missed catches marked the team's poorest fielding showing at a World Cup tournament.
“Maybe it’s just that time of the tournament – we’ve been here a while, and it’s an issue we’ll analyze,” Healy commented.
This allowed the opposition to eke out 9-198 after they had opted to bat first, their best-ever total in an One-Day International against the Aussies, with Sobhana Mostary compiling the maiden half-century ever for the Asian side against the reigning champions.
But Alana King mesmeric continuous 10-over spell, in which she took 2-18 with four maidens, was key to ensuring Australia’s chase remained manageable.
The Captain Delighted with Win that Confirms Semi-Final Place
The Australian skipper was pleased to discover that the triumph, which places her undefeated side at the top of the standings on nine points after four wins and a abandoned match, guarantees them a berth in the last-four. “That’s really cool,” she said.
The experienced captain sped to her hundred off just 73 deliveries, the quickest century of the tournament, and finished with 20 boundaries off the 77 deliveries she faced as she pulled away from Litchfield in the latter stages in the innings after they had gone almost shot for shot towards their fifties.
Litchfield Impresses with Maiden World Cup Fifty
Left-hander Phoebe Litchfield hit 12 boundaries and a six, getting to her first tournament fifty off 46 deliveries shortly 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.
In the first innings, during the subpar fielding display, the captain spilled the simplest of chances off Darcie Brown and also failed to hold on to a tough lofted one off another bowler. Annoyingly, she also take a clear chance off Brown but didn’t have it reviewed when the umpire turned down their shout.
The reinstated Brown sent down the fastest deliveries at the tournament so far but was nonetheless the team's most expensive bowler, going for 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spin Attack Thrive as Alana King Stars
Instead, the spinners thrived, led by King, whose spell could have been more successful if a fielder hadn’t missed one in the slip cordon.
Other spinners Wareham (2-22 off seven) and Gardner (two for 48 off nine) both contributed, while Annabel Sutherland strengthened her position as the tournament’s leading wicket-taker with her 2-41, taking her tally to thirteen.
Rubya Haider’s 44 runs and Mostary’s not out 66 runs off 80 balls took Bangladesh to their highest-ever score against the Australians, but the target was made to look straightforward by a side who had chased down 330 runs against India four days earlier.
“It’s always nice when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a global tournament,” said star performer King. “No doubt it doesn’t stop here. We anticipate going back to Indore to take on England and the Proteas.”
