The Australian skipper has delivered outstanding back-to-back hundreds to lead her team into the last four of the World Cup, driving them to a merciless comprehensive win over Bangladesh.
The wicketkeeper-batter remained not out on 113 runs, coming just four days after her similarly brilliant 142-run knock that saw off hosts India at the identical Visakhapatnam stadium. This time, she combined in an unbroken 200-run first-wicket stand with Phoebe Litchfield (84no) to chase to their target of 199 in just under 25 overs.
“I thought I was a little bit poor behind the stumps, and perhaps a little bit as captain as well tonight, but we’ll accept the two points and progress,” she said.
Ironically, the utmost professionalism of Thursday’s run-chase as the duo put on 202 runs followed perhaps the team's shoddiest performance in the fielding department under the captain's leadership, with the skipper criticizing herself in particular for dropping two of the six chances that were missed.
“I was a little bit disappointed with my glovework, and I needed to compensate with the batting, and luckily got the job done,” Healy continued.
Since data was initially recorded on fielding performance metrics in 2013, the six dropped catches represented Australia’s worst fielding showing at a World Cup tournament.
“Maybe it’s just that time of the competition – we’ve been here a little while, and it’s something we’ll reflect on,” the captain said.
This allowed the opposition to eke out 9-198 after they had opted to bat first, their best-ever total in an One-Day International against the Aussies, with Sobhana Mostary compiling the first fifty ever for the Asian side against the world champions.
But Alana King mesmeric unbroken 10-over bowling performance, in which she took 2-18 with four maidens, was vital to making sure the team's chase remained manageable.
Healy Delighted with Victory that Confirms Semi-Final Place
Healy was pleased to discover that the victory, which places her undefeated team at the top of the group table on nine points after four victories and a abandoned match, guarantees them a berth in the last-four. “That's fantastic,” she said.
The experienced skipper raced to her century off just 73 deliveries, the quickest century of the World Cup, and ended with 20 boundaries off the 77 deliveries she faced as she accelerated from Litchfield later in the knock after they had gone practically boundary-for-boundary towards their half-centuries.
The Opener Impresses with First World Cup Fifty
Left-hander Phoebe Litchfield struck 12 boundaries and a six, reaching to her maiden World Cup fifty off 46 deliveries shortly after Healy got there off 43. They went on to record the third-highest stand by any Australian pair at a World Cup event.
In the first innings, during the subpar fielding display, Healy dropped the easiest of chances off Darcie Brown and also was unable to grasp a difficult lofted one off another bowler. Frustratingly, she also take a clear chance off Brown but failed to review when the official rejected their appeal.
The recalled Brown sent down the fastest balls at the tournament so far but was still the Aussies’ costliest bowler, going for 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spin Attack Excel as Alana King Stars
Instead, the spinners thrived, led by King, whose performance could have been more successful if Beth Mooney hadn’t dropped one in the slips.
Fellow spin bowlers Wareham (2-22 off seven overs) and Ash Gardner (2-48 off nine overs) both chipped in, while Annabel Sutherland consolidated her position as the tournament’s top wicket-taker with her 2-41, bringing her total to 13.
A batter's 44 and Mostary’s unbeaten 66 off 80 deliveries took Bangladesh to their record total against the Aussies, but the target was made to look easy meat by a side who had chased down 330 runs against the Indian side a few days before.
“It's great when you’ve got the ‘Q’ next to your name in a global tournament,” remarked player-of-the-match King. “Certainly it doesn’t stop here. We look forward to returning to Indore to take on the English team and South Africa.”
