The Australian skipper has executed outstanding back-to-back hundreds to steer her squad into the semi-finals of the World Cup, motivating them to a commanding comprehensive victory over Bangladesh.
The wicketkeeper-batter finished not out on 113 runs, coming just four days after her similarly stellar 142-run knock that saw off hosts India at the identical Visakhapatnam venue. This time, she shared an undefeated double-century first-wicket stand with her opening partner (84 not out) to dash to their target of 199 in just under 25 overs.
“I felt I was a below par behind the stumps, and probably a little bit as skipper as well today, but we’ll take the win and progress,” Healy remarked.
Interestingly, the supreme expertise of the day's run-chase as the pair put on 202 followed perhaps Australia’s poorest display in the fielding department under Healy’s stewardship, with the captain criticizing herself in particular for dropping a couple of the six chances that were missed.
“I felt somewhat let down with my wicketkeeping, and I needed to compensate with the bat, and luckily delivered,” she added.
From the time data was initially recorded on fielding performance statistics in the year 2013, the half-dozen dropped catches marked the team'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,” Healy said.
It helped the opposition to manage 9-198 after they had chosen to bat first, their highest total in an One-Day International against the Aussies, with a key batter scoring the first fifty ever for the Asian side against the world champions.
But Alana King spellbinding unbroken ten-over spell, in which she claimed 2-18 with four maidens, was vital to making sure Australia’s target wasn’t too challenging.
The Captain Delighted with Win that Seals Semi-Final Spot
The Australian skipper was delighted to learn that the triumph, which puts 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 said.
The experienced captain sped to her hundred off just 73 balls, the fastest hundred of the World Cup, and finished with 20 fours 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 half-centuries.
The Opener Impresses with Maiden World Cup Half-Century
The young batter Phoebe Litchfield struck 12 boundaries and a six, getting to her first World Cup fifty off 46 deliveries shortly after her partner got there off 43 balls. They went on to record the third-best stand by any Australian pair at a Women’s World Cup.
Earlier, during the sluggish fielding display, Healy spilled the easiest of edges off a teammate and also failed to hold on to a tough lofted one off Annabel Sutherland. Frustratingly, she also take a clean catch off the same bowler but failed to review when the official turned down their shout.
The reinstated Brown sent down the quickest balls at the World Cup so far but was nonetheless the Aussies’ most expensive bowling option, conceding 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spin Attack Excel as King Leads
In contrast, the spinners excelled, spearheaded by King, whose spell could have been even more productive if a fielder hadn’t missed one in the slips.
Other spinners Wareham (two for 22 off seven) and Gardner (2-48 off nine overs) both chipped in, while Annabel Sutherland strengthened her standing as the tournament’s top wicket-taker with her two for 41, bringing her tally to thirteen.
A batter's 44 and Mostary’s not out 66 off 80 deliveries took the team to their record total against the Aussies, but the total was made to look easy meat by a team who had successfully pursued 330 runs against the Indian side four days before.
“It’s always nice when you’ve got the ‘Q’ next to your name in a World Cup,” said player-of-the-match King. “No doubt it doesn’t stop here. We anticipate going back to the next venue to face England and South Africa.”
