The Australian skipper has delivered outstanding back-to-back centuries to steer her team into the last four of the Women's Cricket World Cup, driving them to a dominant 10-wicket victory over their opponents.
The wicketkeeper-batter remained not out on 113, arriving just four days after her similarly impressive 142 that saw off hosts India at the same Visakhapatnam venue. This time, she shared an undefeated double-century first-wicket stand with Phoebe Litchfield (84 not out) to chase to their goal of 199 runs in just 24.5 deliveries.
“I thought I was a below par behind the stumps, and probably a bit as captain as well today, but we’ll accept the win and progress,” Healy remarked.
Interestingly, the supreme professionalism of Thursday’s chase as the duo added 202 runs followed perhaps the team's weakest performance in the field under Healy’s stewardship, with the skipper scolding herself in particular for spilling a couple of the six chances that were missed.
“I was a little bit disappointed with my wicketkeeping, and I had a little bit to make up for with the batting, and fortunately succeeded,” she added.
From the time data was first taken on fielding statistics in 2013, the half-dozen dropped opportunities represented the team's poorest fielding showing at a Women’s World Cup.
“Perhaps it’s just that phase of the tournament – we’ve been here a little while, and it’s an issue we’ll review,” Healy said.
This allowed the opposition to manage 9-198 after they had opted to bat, their highest total in an ODI against Australia, with Sobhana Mostary scoring the maiden fifty ever for the Asian side against the world champions.
But Alana King mesmeric unbroken 10-over spell, in which she claimed two wickets for 18 runs with four maidens, was crucial to ensuring the team's chase remained manageable.
The Captain Pleased with Victory that Seals Semi-Final Place
The Australian skipper was delighted to discover that the triumph, which places her undefeated team top of the group table on nine points after four victories and a abandoned match, guarantees them a berth in the last-four. “That's great news,” she exclaimed.
The experienced skipper raced to her hundred off just 73 balls, the fastest hundred of the World Cup, and ended with 20 boundaries off the 77 balls she faced as she pulled away from her partner later in the knock after they had gone almost shot for shot towards their fifties.
The Opener Impresses with Maiden Tournament Half-Century
Left-hander Litchfield struck 12 boundaries and one maximum, getting to her maiden World Cup half-century off 46 balls shortly after Healy got there off 43. They went on to record the third-best partnership by any Australian pair at a World Cup event.
In the first innings, during the subpar fielding effort, Healy spilled the simplest of edges off Darcie Brown and also was unable to grasp a difficult lofted one off another bowler. Frustratingly, she also did take a clear chance off Brown but failed to review when the umpire turned down their shout.
The recalled Brown sent down the quickest deliveries at the tournament so far but was still the Aussies’ most expensive bowling option, going for 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spinners Excel as Alana King Leads
Instead, the spinners thrived, led by King, whose spell could have been more successful if Beth Mooney hadn’t dropped one in the slips.
Fellow spinners Wareham (2-22 off seven overs) and Gardner (two for 48 off nine overs) both chipped in, while Sutherland strengthened her position as the competition's leading wicket-taker with her two for 41, bringing her tally to thirteen.
A batter's 44 runs and Mostary’s not out 66 runs off 80 deliveries took Bangladesh to their highest-ever total against the Australians, but the total was rendered easy meat by a side who had successfully pursued 330 runs against the Indian side a few days before.
“It’s always nice when you’ve got the ‘Q’ next to your name in a World Cup,” said star performer Alana King. “Certainly it doesn’t stop here. We look forward to going back to Indore to take on the English team and South Africa.”
