The Australian skipper has executed superb back-to-back hundreds to lead her team into the last four of the Women's Cricket World Cup, inspiring them to a merciless comprehensive win over their opponents.
Healy finished unbeaten on 113 runs, arriving just a few days after her similarly brilliant 142-run knock that defeated hosts India at the identical Visakhapatnam stadium. This time, she shared an undefeated double-century opening partnership with her opening partner (84 not out) to dash to their goal of 199 runs in just 24.5 deliveries.
“I thought I was a little bit poor with the gloves, and perhaps a bit as captain as well tonight, but we’ll accept the win and progress,” she said.
Ironically, the supreme expertise of the day's chase as the pair put on 202 came after perhaps Australia’s poorest display in the field under Healy’s stewardship, with the skipper criticizing herself in especial for dropping a couple of the six catches that were missed.
“I felt somewhat let down with my glovework, and I had a little bit to make up for with the batting, and luckily delivered,” Healy continued.
Since statistics was first taken on fielding performance metrics in the year 2013, the half-dozen dropped opportunities marked Australia’s worst fielding display at a Women’s World Cup.
“Perhaps it’s just that phase of the competition – we’ve been here a little while, and it’s an issue we’ll analyze,” Healy said.
This allowed Bangladesh to manage 9-198 after they had chosen to bat, their best-ever total in an One-Day International against the Aussies, with a key batter compiling the maiden half-century ever for the Asian side against the world champions.
But Alana King mesmeric continuous 10-over bowling performance, in which she claimed 2-18 with four maiden overs, was key to ensuring Australia’s chase wasn’t too challenging.
The Captain Delighted with Victory that Seals Knockout Place
Healy was thrilled to learn that the victory, which places her unbeaten side top of the group table on nine points after four wins and a abandoned match, secures them a place in the last-four. “That’s really cool,” she exclaimed.
The experienced captain raced to her hundred off just 73 deliveries, the quickest century of the World Cup, and ended with 20 fours off the 77 balls she faced as she pulled away from Litchfield later in the innings after they had gone practically boundary-for-boundary towards their fifties.
The Opener Shines with Maiden Tournament Fifty
The young batter Phoebe Litchfield hit 12 boundaries and a six, getting to her first tournament half-century off 46 deliveries shortly after her partner got there off 43 balls. They went on to record the third-best partnership by any Australian duo at a Women’s World Cup.
Earlier, during the subpar fielding display, the captain dropped the easiest of chances off a teammate and also was unable to grasp a tough skied one off another bowler. Frustratingly, she also take a clean chance off Brown but failed to review when the umpire rejected their appeal.
The recalled Darcie Brown sent down the quickest deliveries at the World Cup so far but was nonetheless the Aussies’ costliest bowling option, conceding 0-52 off her nine overs.
Spinners Thrive as King Leads
Instead, the spinners excelled, led by King, whose spell could have been more successful if a fielder hadn’t dropped one in the slip cordon.
Fellow spin bowlers Wareham (2-22 off seven overs) and Ash Gardner (2-48 off nine) both contributed, while Sutherland consolidated her standing as the tournament’s top wicket-taker with her two for 41, taking her total to 13.
A batter's 44 and Mostary’s unbeaten 66 runs off 80 balls took Bangladesh to their highest-ever score against the Aussies, but the target was made to look easy meat by a side who had chased down 330 runs against India four days earlier.
“It's great when you’ve got the ‘Q’ next to your name in a World Cup,” remarked player-of-the-match Alana King. “No doubt it won't end here. We anticipate returning to the next venue to face England and the Proteas.”
