The Australian skipper has executed brilliant back-to-back centuries to steer her team into the semi-finals of the World Cup, motivating them to a commanding comprehensive trouncing over Bangladesh.
Healy finished not out on 113 runs, coming just a few days after her similarly impressive 142-run knock that saw off the Indian team at the same Visakhapatnam venue. This time, she combined in an unbroken 200-run opening partnership with Phoebe Litchfield (84no) to chase to their goal of 199 runs in just under 25 overs.
“I thought I was a not at my best with the gloves, and probably a little bit as skipper as well today, but we’ll take the win and move on,” Healy remarked.
Interestingly, the utmost expertise of the day's run-chase as the pair put on 202 runs followed perhaps the team's shoddiest performance in the fielding department under Healy’s stewardship, with the captain criticizing herself in especial for dropping a couple of the six catches that went down.
“I felt somewhat let down with my wicketkeeping, and I needed to compensate with the batting, and luckily got the job done,” Healy continued.
From the time statistics was initially taken on fielding statistics in 2013, the half-dozen dropped catches represented 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 while, and it’s something we’ll analyze,” Healy said.
This allowed Bangladesh to manage 198 for 9 after they had opted to bat first, their highest score in an ODI against Australia, with a key batter compiling the maiden half-century ever for the Asian side against the world champions.
But the spinner's spellbinding unbroken 10-over bowling performance, in which she claimed two wickets for 18 runs with four maidens, was vital to making sure the team's chase wasn’t too challenging.
The Captain Pleased with Win that Confirms Semi-Final Spot
The Australian skipper was thrilled to discover that the triumph, which places her undefeated team at the top of the group table on nine points after four victories and a wash-out, guarantees them a place in the last-four. “That’s really cool,” she said.
The 35-year-old skipper sped to her hundred off just 73 balls, the quickest hundred of the tournament, and ended with 20 fours off the 77 balls she faced as she pulled away from Litchfield in the latter stages in the innings after they had gone practically shot for shot towards their fifties.
Litchfield Shines with First Tournament Half-Century
Left-hander Litchfield struck 12 boundaries and one maximum, reaching to her first World Cup half-century off 46 deliveries shortly after Healy got there off 43 balls. They went on to achieve the third-best partnership by any Aussie duo at a World Cup event.
Earlier, during the sluggish fielding display, the captain spilled the simplest of chances off Darcie Brown and also was unable to grasp a difficult lofted one off another bowler. Annoyingly, she also did take a clean catch off the same bowler but failed to review when the official rejected their appeal.
The recalled Darcie Brown sent down the quickest deliveries 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.
Spinners Excel as Alana King Leads
In contrast, the slow bowlers excelled, led by King, whose spell could have been more successful if a fielder hadn’t missed one in the slips.
Fellow spin bowlers Wareham (two for 22 off seven overs) and Gardner (2-48 off nine overs) both contributed, while Sutherland consolidated her standing as the competition's leading wicket-taker with her 2-41, bringing her total to 13.
Rubya Haider’s 44 runs and Mostary’s not out 66 off 80 deliveries took Bangladesh to their record score against the Aussies, but the target was rendered straightforward by a team who had successfully pursued 330 against the Indian side a few days earlier.
“It's great when you’ve got the ‘Q’ next to your name in a global tournament,” said star performer Alana King. “Certainly it doesn’t stop here. We anticipate returning to Indore to face the English team and the Proteas.”
