The Australian skipper has delivered outstanding consecutive hundreds to steer her squad into the semi-finals of the World Cup, driving them to a dominant 10-wicket win over their opponents.
Healy remained unbeaten on 113 runs, coming just a few days after her equally brilliant 142-run knock that saw off hosts India at the identical Visakhapatnam stadium. This time, she shared an unbroken double-century opening partnership with Phoebe Litchfield (84no) to dash to their goal of 199 runs in just 24.5 overs.
“I thought I was a not at my best behind the stumps, and perhaps a bit as captain as well today, but we’ll take the win and progress,” she said.
Ironically, the supreme professionalism of the day's chase as the pair added 202 runs came after possibly Australia’s poorest performance in the fielding department under the captain's stewardship, with the skipper criticizing herself in particular for dropping a couple of the half-dozen catches that went down.
“I felt somewhat let down with my glovework, and I needed to compensate with the batting, and fortunately delivered,” she added.
Since statistics was first taken on fielding performance statistics in the year 2013, the six dropped catches marked Australia’s worst fielding showing at a World Cup tournament.
“Maybe it’s just that time of the tournament – we’ve been here a little while, and it’s an issue we’ll reflect on,” the captain said.
This allowed Bangladesh to manage 198 for 9 after they had chosen to bat first, their highest score in an One-Day International against the Aussies, with a key batter compiling the maiden half-century ever for the Bangladeshi team against the reigning champions.
But the spinner's mesmeric continuous 10-over bowling performance, in which she claimed 2-18 with four maidens, was crucial to making sure Australia’s chase remained manageable.
Healy Delighted with Victory that Confirms Knockout Spot
Healy was delighted to discover that the triumph, which places her unbeaten team top of the standings on nine points after four victories and a abandoned match, secures them a berth in the semi-finals. “That’s really cool,” she exclaimed.
The experienced captain raced to her century off just 73 balls, the quickest century of the tournament, and ended with 20 fours off the 77 deliveries she faced as she accelerated from Litchfield later in the knock after they had gone almost boundary-for-boundary towards their fifties.
The Opener Impresses with First World Cup Fifty
The young batter Phoebe Litchfield struck 12 fours and one maximum, getting to her maiden World Cup fifty off 46 balls shortly after her partner reached hers off 43. They went on to achieve the third-highest stand by any Australian duo at a Women’s World Cup.
In the first innings, during the sluggish fielding display, the captain spilled the simplest of edges off a teammate and also was unable to hold on to a tough skied one off Annabel Sutherland. Annoyingly, she also take a clear chance off Brown but didn’t have it reviewed when the official rejected their shout.
The reinstated Darcie Brown sent down the quickest deliveries at the tournament so far but was still the Aussies’ costliest bowler, conceding 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spinners Excel as King Leads
Instead, the slow bowlers excelled, led by Alana King, whose spell could have been even more productive if a fielder hadn’t missed one in the slip cordon.
Other spinners Georgia Wareham (two for 22 off seven) and Ash Gardner (two for 48 off nine) both contributed, while Annabel Sutherland strengthened her position as the competition's top wicket-taker with her two for 41, bringing her tally to thirteen.
Rubya Haider’s 44 and another's unbeaten 66 off 80 deliveries took Bangladesh to their record total against the Australians, but the total was rendered easy meat by a team who had chased down 330 runs against the Indian side four days earlier.
“It's fantastic when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a global tournament,” said star performer King. “Certainly it doesn’t stop here. We anticipate returning to Indore to face the English team and South Africa.”
