The Australian skipper has produced outstanding consecutive centuries to guide her team into the semi-finals of the Women's Cricket World Cup, motivating them to a merciless 10-wicket win over their opponents.
The wicketkeeper-batter finished unbeaten on 113, arriving just a few days after her similarly impressive 142-run knock that defeated the Indian team at the same Visakhapatnam venue. This time, she shared an undefeated 200-run opening partnership with her opening partner (84no) to chase to their goal of 199 runs in just 24.5 overs.
“I felt 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 move on,” Healy remarked.
Ironically, the utmost professionalism of Thursday’s run-chase as the duo added 202 came after possibly Australia’s shoddiest display in the field under the captain's stewardship, with the captain scolding herself in especial for spilling a couple of the six chances that went down.
“I felt somewhat let down with my glovework, and I needed to compensate with the batting, and luckily got the job done,” she added.
Since statistics was first recorded on fielding metrics in the year 2013, the half-dozen dropped catches marked 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 while, and it’s an issue we’ll analyze,” Healy commented.
This allowed the opposition to manage 9-198 after they had opted to bat, their best-ever score in an ODI against the Aussies, with a key batter compiling the maiden fifty ever for the Bangladeshi team against the reigning champions.
But the spinner's mesmeric continuous 10-over bowling performance, in which she took two wickets for 18 runs with four maiden overs, was vital to ensuring Australia’s target wasn’t too challenging.
Healy Delighted with Victory that Seals Semi-Final Place
Healy 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 experienced skipper sped to her century off just 73 deliveries, the quickest hundred of the World Cup, and finished with 20 fours off the 77 balls she confronted as she accelerated from her partner in the latter stages in the innings after they had gone almost boundary-for-boundary towards their fifties.
Litchfield Shines with First World Cup Half-Century
Left-hander Litchfield struck 12 fours and a six, getting to her first World Cup half-century off 46 balls shortly after Healy reached hers off 43. They went on to record the third-best stand by any Australian duo at a World Cup event.
Earlier, during the sluggish fielding effort, Healy spilled the easiest of chances off Darcie Brown and also was unable to hold on to a tough skied one off Annabel Sutherland. Frustratingly, she also take a clear catch off Brown but didn’t have it reviewed when the umpire turned down their appeal.
The reinstated Brown bowled the fastest deliveries at the tournament so far but was still the team's most expensive bowling option, going for 0-52 off her nine overs.
Spin Attack Thrive as Alana King Stars
In contrast, the slow bowlers excelled, led by King, whose performance could have been even more productive if Beth Mooney hadn’t missed one in the slips.
Fellow spinners Wareham (2-22 off seven overs) and Ash Gardner (two for 48 off nine overs) both chipped in, while Annabel Sutherland strengthened her standing as the tournament’s leading wicket-taker with her two for 41, taking her total to thirteen.
Rubya Haider’s 44 runs and Mostary’s unbeaten 66 off 80 balls took Bangladesh to their record score against the Australians, but the target was made to look easy meat by a team who had chased down 330 runs against India four days earlier.
“It’s always nice when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a World Cup,” said star performer King. “No doubt it doesn’t stop here. We look forward to returning to the next venue to take on England and the Proteas.”
