The Australian skipper has produced superb back-to-back centuries to steer her squad into the semi-finals of the Women's Cricket World Cup, motivating them to a commanding comprehensive trouncing over Bangladesh.
The wicketkeeper-batter finished unbeaten on 113, arriving just a few days after her similarly impressive 142-run knock that saw off hosts India at the same Visakhapatnam venue. This time, she shared an undefeated 200-run first-wicket stand with Phoebe Litchfield (84 not out) to chase to their target of 199 runs in just under 25 overs.
“I felt I was a little bit poor with the gloves, and probably a little bit as captain as well today, but we’ll accept the two points and move on,” she said.
Interestingly, the supreme expertise of Thursday’s chase as the pair added 202 runs followed perhaps the team's shoddiest performance in the fielding department under the captain's stewardship, with the skipper criticizing herself in especial for spilling two of the half-dozen chances that were missed.
“I was a little bit disappointed with my glovework, and I needed to compensate with the batting, and luckily succeeded,” Healy continued.
From the time statistics was first recorded on fielding performance metrics in the year 2013, the half-dozen missed opportunities marked the team's poorest fielding display at a World Cup tournament.
“Maybe it’s just that phase of the competition – we’ve been here a little while, and it’s an issue we’ll review,” Healy said.
It helped the opposition to manage 9-198 after they had chosen to bat, their highest total in an One-Day International against Australia, with a key batter compiling the first fifty ever for the Asian side against the world champions.
But the spinner's mesmeric continuous 10-over bowling performance, in which she took two wickets for 18 runs with four maiden overs, was crucial to making sure Australia’s target remained manageable.
The Captain Delighted with Victory that Seals Knockout Place
The Australian skipper was delighted to learn that the victory, which puts her unbeaten team top of the group table on nine points after four wins and a abandoned match, secures them a berth in the last-four. “That's great news,” she exclaimed.
The 35-year-old skipper raced to her century off just 73 deliveries, the fastest century of the World Cup, and ended with 20 boundaries off the 77 deliveries she faced as she pulled away from Litchfield later in the knock after they had gone almost boundary-for-boundary towards their fifties.
Litchfield Impresses with Maiden World Cup Half-Century
Left-hander Litchfield hit 12 fours and one maximum, getting to her maiden tournament fifty off 46 deliveries shortly after her partner got there off 43 balls. They went on to record the third-highest partnership by any Australian duo at a Women’s World Cup.
Earlier, during the sluggish fielding display, Healy dropped the simplest of chances off a teammate and also failed to grasp a tough skied one off Annabel Sutherland. Frustratingly, she also take a clear chance off Brown but failed to review when the umpire turned down their shout.
The recalled Brown sent down the quickest balls at the tournament so far but was still the team's costliest bowler, going for 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spinners Thrive as Alana King Stars
In contrast, the slow bowlers excelled, spearheaded by Alana King, whose spell could have been even more productive if a fielder hadn’t missed one in the slip cordon.
Fellow spin bowlers Georgia Wareham (2-22 off seven overs) and Ash Gardner (2-48 off nine overs) both chipped in, while Annabel Sutherland consolidated her position as the tournament’s leading wicket-taker with her 2-41, taking her total to thirteen.
A batter's 44 and another's not out 66 runs off 80 deliveries took Bangladesh to their highest-ever score against the Australians, but the total was rendered easy meat by a side who had successfully pursued 330 against the Indian side four days earlier.
“It's fantastic when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a World Cup,” said star performer Alana King. “No doubt it won't end here. We look forward to going back to the next venue to take on England and the Proteas.”
