The Australian skipper has delivered brilliant back-to-back hundreds to steer her squad into the semi-finals of the Women's Cricket World Cup, motivating them to a commanding 10-wicket victory over Bangladesh.
Healy remained not out on 113 runs, arriving just a few days after her equally stellar 142 that saw off the Indian team at the same Vizag stadium. This time, she shared an unbroken double-century opening partnership with her opening partner (84no) to race to their target of 199 runs in just under 25 overs.
“I felt I was a not at my best with the gloves, and probably a bit as skipper as well tonight, but we’ll accept the two points and progress,” Healy remarked.
Ironically, the supreme expertise of Thursday’s run-chase as the duo added 202 followed perhaps the team's poorest display in the fielding department under the captain's stewardship, with the captain scolding herself in especial for spilling a couple of the half-dozen catches that were missed.
“I felt somewhat let down with my wicketkeeping, and I had a little bit to make up for with the batting, and fortunately succeeded,” Healy continued.
Since data was first taken on fielding performance metrics in 2013, the half-dozen missed opportunities represented the team's poorest fielding display at a World Cup tournament.
“Perhaps it’s just that time of the competition – we’ve been here a while, and it’s something we’ll reflect on,” the captain commented.
It helped the opposition to eke out 198 for 9 after they had opted to bat, their highest total in an ODI against the Aussies, with Sobhana Mostary scoring the maiden half-century ever for the Bangladeshi team against the reigning champions.
But the spinner's spellbinding continuous 10-over spell, in which she claimed two wickets for 18 runs with four maiden overs, was vital to ensuring Australia’s chase wasn’t too challenging.
The Captain Delighted with Win that Confirms Knockout Spot
The Australian skipper was thrilled to discover that the victory, which puts her unbeaten team at the top of the group table on nine points after four wins and a wash-out, guarantees them a place in the last-four. “That's fantastic,” she exclaimed.
The experienced skipper sped to her century off just 73 balls, the quickest century of the tournament, and finished with 20 boundaries off the 77 deliveries she confronted as she pulled away from Litchfield later in the knock after they had gone practically shot for shot towards their fifties.
The Opener Shines with First World Cup Half-Century
Left-hander Phoebe Litchfield hit 12 boundaries and one maximum, reaching to her maiden World Cup fifty off 46 balls shortly after Healy got there off 43. They went on to record the third-best stand by any Australian pair at a Women’s World Cup.
In the first innings, during the sluggish fielding display, the captain spilled the easiest of edges off Darcie Brown and also was unable to grasp a difficult lofted one off Annabel Sutherland. Annoyingly, she also take a clean catch off Brown but didn’t have it reviewed when the official turned down their appeal.
The reinstated Brown bowled the fastest deliveries at the World Cup so far but was nonetheless the team's costliest bowling option, conceding 0-52 off her nine overs.
Spinners Excel as King Leads
In contrast, the slow bowlers excelled, spearheaded by King, whose spell could have been even more productive if Beth Mooney hadn’t missed one in the slips.
Fellow spin bowlers Georgia Wareham (two for 22 off seven) and Gardner (2-48 off nine) both chipped in, while Annabel Sutherland strengthened her standing as the competition's leading wicket-taker with her two for 41, taking her total to thirteen.
A batter's 44 and another's unbeaten 66 runs off 80 balls took Bangladesh to their record total against the Aussies, but the total was rendered straightforward by a team who had successfully pursued 330 against the Indian side four days earlier.
“It's fantastic when you’ve got the ‘Q’ next to your name in a global tournament,” remarked star performer Alana King. “Certainly it doesn’t stop here. We look forward to returning to the next venue to face England and South Africa.”
