The Australian skipper has produced superb back-to-back hundreds to lead her team into the last four of the Women's Cricket World Cup, driving them to a dominant 10-wicket victory over their opponents.
Healy remained not out on 113 runs, coming just a few days after her equally impressive 142 that saw off the Indian team at the same Visakhapatnam venue. This time, she shared an undefeated double-century first-wicket stand with Phoebe Litchfield (84 not out) to dash to their target of 199 in just under 25 overs.
“I felt I was a little bit poor with the gloves, and perhaps a little bit as skipper as well tonight, but we’ll accept the win and progress,” Healy remarked.
Ironically, the supreme expertise of Thursday’s chase as the duo added 202 followed perhaps Australia’s poorest performance in the fielding department under the captain's leadership, with the skipper scolding herself in especial for spilling two of the six catches that were missed.
“I was a little bit disappointed with my wicketkeeping, and I needed to compensate with the bat, and fortunately got the job done,” she added.
From the time data was initially taken on fielding performance statistics in 2013, the six dropped opportunities marked Australia’s poorest fielding showing at a World Cup tournament.
“Perhaps it’s just that time of the tournament – we’ve been here a while, and it’s something we’ll review,” Healy commented.
It helped the opposition to manage 198 for 9 after they had chosen to bat first, their best-ever score in an One-Day International against the Aussies, with a key batter compiling the first fifty ever for the Bangladeshi team against the reigning champions.
But the spinner's mesmeric unbroken 10-over bowling performance, in which she claimed two wickets for 18 runs with four maiden overs, was key to ensuring the team's target wasn’t too challenging.
Healy Delighted with Victory that Seals Semi-Final Place
Healy was delighted to learn that the triumph, which places her unbeaten team top of the standings on nine points after four wins and a abandoned match, secures them a berth in the semi-finals. “That's fantastic,” she exclaimed.
The experienced captain raced to her century off just 73 deliveries, the quickest century of the tournament, and finished with 20 fours off the 77 deliveries she faced as she accelerated from Litchfield later in the knock after they had gone practically shot for shot towards their fifties.
Litchfield Impresses with Maiden World Cup Fifty
The young batter 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 record the third-highest stand by any Aussie duo at a World Cup event.
In the first innings, during the sluggish fielding display, Healy dropped the easiest of edges off Darcie Brown and also failed to grasp a difficult skied one off Annabel Sutherland. Annoyingly, she also did take a clear chance off Brown but failed to review when the official turned down their appeal.
The recalled Darcie Brown bowled the quickest deliveries at the tournament so far but was still the Aussies’ costliest bowling option, going for 0-52 off her nine overs.
Spin Attack Excel as King Stars
Instead, the slow bowlers thrived, led by Alana King, whose spell could have been even more productive if Beth Mooney hadn’t dropped one in the slip cordon.
Other spin bowlers Wareham (2-22 off seven) and Gardner (2-48 off nine) both contributed, while Annabel Sutherland strengthened her standing as the competition's top wicket-taker with her 2-41, bringing her total to thirteen.
A batter's 44 and another's not out 66 runs off 80 balls took the team to their highest-ever total against the Australians, but the total was rendered easy meat by a side who had chased down 330 against India a few days before.
“It’s always nice when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a global tournament,” remarked player-of-the-match King. “No doubt it won't end here. We look forward to returning to Indore to face the English team and the Proteas.”
