The Australian skipper has executed outstanding back-to-back centuries to lead her squad into the semi-finals of the World Cup, motivating them to a merciless comprehensive win over their opponents.
Healy remained not out on 113, coming just a few days after her equally brilliant 142-run knock that saw off hosts India at the same Visakhapatnam stadium. This time, she shared an undefeated double-century opening partnership with Phoebe Litchfield (84 not out) to race to their target of 199 in just under 25 deliveries.
“I thought I was a below par with the gloves, and probably a bit as captain as well today, but we’ll accept the two points and move on,” Healy remarked.
Interestingly, the utmost expertise of the day's chase as the pair put on 202 came after possibly Australia’s weakest display in the field under the captain's leadership, with the skipper criticizing herself in especial for dropping a couple of the six catches that were missed.
“I felt somewhat let down with my glovework, and I had a little bit to make up for with the bat, and luckily got the job done,” she added.
From the time statistics was first taken on fielding metrics in 2013, the six missed catches marked the team's poorest fielding showing at a World Cup tournament.
“Maybe it’s just that phase of the tournament – we’ve been here a little while, and it’s something we’ll reflect on,” the captain commented.
It helped Bangladesh to eke out 198 for 9 after they had chosen to bat, their highest total in an ODI against the Aussies, with a key batter compiling the first fifty ever for the Asian side against the world champions.
But Alana King spellbinding continuous 10-over spell, in which she claimed 2-18 with four maiden overs, was crucial to making sure the team's target remained manageable.
The Captain Delighted with Victory that Confirms Semi-Final Spot
Healy was pleased to learn 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 semi-finals. “That's great news,” she exclaimed.
The experienced skipper raced to her century off just 73 balls, the fastest hundred of the World Cup, and ended with 20 boundaries off the 77 deliveries she confronted as she accelerated from Litchfield in the latter stages in the innings after they had gone practically boundary-for-boundary towards their half-centuries.
Litchfield Impresses with First World Cup Fifty
Left-hander Litchfield hit 12 fours and a six, getting to her maiden World Cup half-century off 46 balls shortly after Healy got there off 43. They went on to achieve the third-best stand by any Australian pair at a Women’s World Cup.
In the first innings, during the subpar fielding effort, the captain dropped the easiest of edges off a teammate and also failed to hold on to a tough skied one off another bowler. Annoyingly, she also did take a clean chance off the same bowler but didn’t have it reviewed when the umpire turned down their shout.
The recalled Darcie Brown sent down the fastest balls at the World Cup so far but was nonetheless the team's costliest bowler, going for 0-52 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 Beth Mooney hadn’t missed one in the slip cordon.
Fellow spinners Wareham (2-22 off seven overs) and Ash Gardner (2-48 off nine overs) both contributed, while Annabel Sutherland consolidated her standing as the competition's top wicket-taker with her 2-41, taking her total to thirteen.
A batter's 44 and another's unbeaten 66 runs off 80 balls took the team to their record total against the Australians, but the target was made to look straightforward by a team who had successfully pursued 330 runs against the Indian side a few days before.
“It's fantastic when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a World Cup,” remarked player-of-the-match Alana King. “Certainly it won't end here. We look forward to returning to the next venue to take on England and South Africa.”
