The Australian skipper has executed brilliant back-to-back hundreds to steer her squad 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 unbeaten on 113 runs, coming just a few days after her equally brilliant 142-run knock that defeated hosts India at the same Vizag stadium. This time, she shared an undefeated 200-run opening partnership with her opening partner (84no) to race to their target of 199 runs in just 24.5 deliveries.
“I thought I was a little bit poor behind the stumps, and perhaps a bit as captain as well today, but we’ll accept the two points and move on,” Healy remarked.
Ironically, the supreme professionalism of the day's chase as the pair added 202 followed perhaps the team's shoddiest display in the fielding department under the captain's leadership, with the skipper scolding herself in particular for dropping two of the half-dozen catches that were missed.
“I was a little bit disappointed with my wicketkeeping, and I needed to compensate with the batting, and fortunately got the job done,” she added.
From the time data was initially recorded on fielding performance statistics in the year 2013, the six missed catches represented the team's poorest fielding display at a Women’s World Cup.
“Maybe it’s just that time of the tournament – we’ve been here a little while, and it’s an issue we’ll review,” the captain said.
This allowed Bangladesh to eke out 198 for 9 after they had chosen to bat first, their best-ever total in an ODI against Australia, with a key batter scoring the maiden fifty ever for the Bangladeshi team against the reigning champions.
But Alana King spellbinding unbroken ten-over spell, in which she took 2-18 with four maidens, was vital to making sure the team's chase wasn’t too challenging.
Healy Delighted with Win that Confirms Semi-Final Spot
Healy was thrilled to discover that the triumph, which places her unbeaten side top of the standings on nine points after four wins and a wash-out, secures them a place in the last-four. “That's fantastic,” she said.
The 35-year-old skipper sped to her century off just 73 deliveries, the quickest century of the World Cup, and ended with 20 fours off the 77 deliveries she confronted as she pulled away from her partner in the latter stages in the innings after they had gone almost boundary-for-boundary towards their fifties.
Litchfield Impresses with First Tournament Fifty
The young batter Litchfield hit 12 fours and a six, reaching to her maiden tournament half-century off 46 balls shortly after her partner got there off 43. They went on to achieve the third-best partnership by any Aussie duo at a Women’s World Cup.
Earlier, during the subpar fielding effort, Healy dropped the simplest of chances off a teammate and also was unable to hold on to a tough skied one off another bowler. Annoyingly, she also take a clean chance off the same bowler but failed to review when the official rejected their shout.
The reinstated Darcie Brown sent down the quickest balls at the tournament so far but was still the team's most expensive bowling option, conceding 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spin Attack Excel as Alana King Leads
Instead, the spinners thrived, spearheaded by King, whose performance could have been even more productive if Beth Mooney hadn’t dropped one in the slips.
Other spinners Wareham (two for 22 off seven) and Gardner (two for 48 off nine) both chipped in, while Sutherland strengthened her position as the tournament’s top wicket-taker with her 2-41, taking her total to 13.
A batter's 44 runs and another's not out 66 off 80 balls took Bangladesh to their record score against the Australians, but the target was rendered straightforward by a side who had successfully pursued 330 runs against India four days earlier.
“It's great 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 look forward to returning to Indore to face England and the Proteas.”
