The Australian skipper has delivered brilliant back-to-back hundreds to lead her squad into the semi-finals of the Women's Cricket World Cup, driving them to a merciless 10-wicket trouncing over Bangladesh.
Healy finished not out on 113 runs, coming just a few days after her equally stellar 142-run knock that defeated the Indian team at the identical Vizag venue. This time, she shared an undefeated double-century opening partnership with her opening partner (84no) to race to their target of 199 in just 24.5 deliveries.
“I thought I was a below par with the gloves, and perhaps a little bit as skipper as well today, but we’ll take the two points and progress,” Healy remarked.
Interestingly, the supreme professionalism of the day's run-chase as the pair added 202 runs followed possibly Australia’s poorest display in the fielding department under the captain's leadership, with the skipper scolding herself in especial for dropping a couple of the six chances that went down.
“I was a little bit disappointed with my wicketkeeping, and I had a little bit to make up for with the batting, and fortunately got the job done,” Healy continued.
Since statistics was initially taken on fielding performance metrics in the year 2013, the half-dozen dropped catches marked Australia’s poorest fielding showing at a World Cup tournament.
“Perhaps it’s just that phase of the competition – we’ve been here a little while, and it’s something we’ll reflect on,” the captain said.
It helped Bangladesh to eke out 9-198 after they had opted to bat, their best-ever score in an One-Day International against Australia, with Sobhana Mostary scoring the first fifty ever for the Bangladeshi team against the world champions.
But the spinner's mesmeric unbroken 10-over spell, in which she took 2-18 with four maidens, was vital to ensuring Australia’s chase remained manageable.
Healy Delighted with Win that Confirms Knockout Place
Healy was delighted to discover that the triumph, which puts her undefeated side at the top of the group table on nine points after four wins and a abandoned match, secures them a berth in the semi-finals. “That’s really cool,” she said.
The experienced captain sped to her hundred off just 73 deliveries, the fastest hundred of the tournament, and ended with 20 boundaries off the 77 deliveries she confronted as she pulled away from her partner in the latter stages in the innings after they had gone practically boundary-for-boundary towards their half-centuries.
Litchfield Shines with Maiden Tournament Half-Century
Left-hander Litchfield hit 12 boundaries and a six, getting to her first World Cup fifty off 46 balls soon after Healy got there off 43. They went on to record the third-best stand by any Aussie pair at a World Cup event.
Earlier, during the sluggish fielding display, the captain spilled the easiest of edges off a teammate and also failed to grasp a difficult skied one off Annabel Sutherland. Annoyingly, she also take a clear chance off the same bowler but didn’t have it reviewed when the umpire turned down their appeal.
The reinstated Brown sent down the fastest balls at the tournament so far but was nonetheless the team's most expensive bowling option, going for 0-52 off her nine overs.
Spinners Excel as King Leads
In contrast, the slow bowlers excelled, led by King, whose performance could have been more successful if Beth Mooney hadn’t dropped one in the slips.
Fellow spin bowlers Wareham (two for 22 off seven) and Gardner (2-48 off nine) both chipped in, while Sutherland consolidated her standing as the tournament’s top wicket-taker with her two for 41, taking her tally to 13.
Rubya Haider’s 44 and another's not out 66 runs off 80 deliveries took the team to their record total against the Australians, but the total was rendered straightforward by a side who had successfully pursued 330 runs against the Indian side four days before.
“It's fantastic when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a global tournament,” remarked player-of-the-match Alana King. “No doubt it won't end here. We anticipate going back to Indore to face the English team and the Proteas.”
