The Australian skipper has delivered brilliant consecutive centuries to guide her team into the last four of the World Cup, driving them to a dominant comprehensive win over Bangladesh.
The wicketkeeper-batter remained not out on 113, arriving just a few days after her equally brilliant 142-run knock that saw off the Indian team at the same Vizag stadium. This time, she shared an unbroken 200-run first-wicket stand with Phoebe Litchfield (84no) to race to their target of 199 in just 24.5 deliveries.
“I thought I was a little bit poor behind the stumps, and perhaps a little bit as captain as well today, but we’ll accept the two points and move on,” Healy remarked.
Interestingly, the supreme professionalism of Thursday’s run-chase as the duo put on 202 runs came after possibly the team's weakest performance in the field under the captain's stewardship, with the captain scolding herself in particular for spilling a couple of the six chances that went down.
“I was a little bit disappointed with my glovework, and I had a little bit to make up for with the batting, and fortunately succeeded,” Healy continued.
Since statistics was initially taken on fielding performance statistics in the year 2013, the half-dozen dropped catches represented Australia’s poorest fielding showing 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 something we’ll analyze,” Healy commented.
This allowed Bangladesh to manage 198 for 9 after they had opted to bat, their highest total in an ODI against Australia, with a key batter scoring the maiden fifty ever for the Bangladeshi team against the world champions.
But the spinner's mesmeric unbroken ten-over bowling performance, in which she took 2-18 with four maidens, was vital to making sure Australia’s target wasn’t too challenging.
Healy Pleased with Win that Confirms Semi-Final Spot
Healy was thrilled to learn that the victory, which puts her undefeated team top of the group table on nine points after four victories and a abandoned match, guarantees them a place in the semi-finals. “That's fantastic,” she said.
The experienced skipper raced to her hundred off just 73 deliveries, the quickest hundred of the World Cup, and ended with 20 boundaries off the 77 deliveries she confronted as she pulled away from Litchfield later in the knock after they had gone almost boundary-for-boundary towards their half-centuries.
Litchfield Shines with Maiden World Cup Fifty
The young batter Litchfield hit 12 fours and a six, reaching to her maiden World Cup fifty off 46 deliveries shortly after Healy got there off 43 balls. They went on to record the third-best stand by any Aussie duo at a World Cup event.
In the first innings, during the subpar fielding effort, the captain spilled the simplest of edges off Darcie Brown and also was unable to hold on to a tough lofted one off Annabel Sutherland. Frustratingly, she also did take a clear chance off Brown but failed to review when the umpire turned down their shout.
The recalled Darcie Brown sent down the fastest balls at the tournament so far but was nonetheless the Aussies’ costliest bowler, going for 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spinners Excel as King Leads
Instead, the slow bowlers excelled, spearheaded by King, whose performance could have been more successful if a fielder hadn’t dropped one in the slip cordon.
Other spin bowlers Georgia Wareham (two for 22 off seven) and Ash Gardner (two for 48 off nine) both contributed, while Sutherland strengthened her position as the tournament’s top wicket-taker with her two for 41, taking her tally to thirteen.
Rubya Haider’s 44 and another's unbeaten 66 runs off 80 deliveries took the team to their highest-ever total against the Australians, but the target was rendered easy meat by a team who had chased down 330 against the Indian side a few days before.
“It's fantastic when you’ve got the ‘Q’ next to your name in a World Cup,” said player-of-the-match Alana King. “No doubt it won't end here. We look forward to returning to the next venue to face the English team and South Africa.”
