The Australian skipper has produced brilliant back-to-back hundreds to lead her team into the last four of the Women's Cricket World Cup, driving them to a dominant comprehensive victory over their opponents.
Healy finished unbeaten on 113 runs, coming just four days after her equally brilliant 142-run knock that saw off the Indian team at the identical Vizag stadium. This time, she shared an undefeated 200-run first-wicket stand with her opening partner (84 not out) to race to their goal of 199 in just 24.5 deliveries.
“I thought I was a little bit poor with the gloves, and probably a little bit as captain as well today, but we’ll take the win and progress,” she said.
Ironically, the utmost expertise of the day's run-chase as the pair added 202 followed possibly Australia’s weakest display in the field under the captain's stewardship, with the captain scolding herself in especial for spilling two of the six catches that went down.
“I felt somewhat let down with my wicketkeeping, and I had a little bit to make up for with the bat, and fortunately succeeded,” she added.
From the time statistics was first taken on fielding statistics in 2013, the half-dozen missed opportunities marked the team's worst fielding display at a Women’s World Cup.
“Perhaps it’s just that time of the competition – we’ve been here a while, and it’s an issue we’ll analyze,” Healy commented.
It helped the opposition to manage 198 for 9 after they had chosen to bat first, their highest total in an ODI against Australia, with a key batter scoring the first half-century ever for the Asian side against the world champions.
But the spinner's mesmeric continuous ten-over spell, in which she took 2-18 with four maiden overs, was crucial to ensuring the team's chase remained manageable.
Healy Pleased with Win that Confirms Knockout Place
Healy was thrilled to learn that the triumph, which puts her unbeaten team at the top of the group table 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 hundred off just 73 balls, the quickest century of the World Cup, and finished with 20 fours off the 77 balls she faced as she pulled away from her partner in the latter stages in the innings after they had gone practically shot for shot towards their fifties.
The Opener Shines with Maiden World Cup Fifty
Left-hander Litchfield hit 12 fours and a six, reaching to her first World Cup fifty off 46 balls shortly after her partner got there off 43 balls. They went on to achieve the third-highest stand by any Aussie duo at a World Cup event.
In the first innings, during the sluggish fielding effort, Healy spilled the simplest of edges off Darcie Brown and also was unable to hold on to a tough skied one off another bowler. Annoyingly, she also take a clean catch off Brown but didn’t have it reviewed when the umpire rejected their shout.
The recalled Brown bowled the quickest balls at the tournament so far but was nonetheless the Aussies’ most expensive bowling option, going for 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spin Attack Excel as Alana King Leads
In contrast, the slow bowlers thrived, spearheaded by King, whose spell could have been even more productive if Beth Mooney hadn’t dropped one in the slip cordon.
Other spinners Wareham (two for 22 off seven overs) and Gardner (two for 48 off nine overs) both contributed, while Annabel Sutherland strengthened her standing as the tournament’s leading wicket-taker with her 2-41, bringing her total to 13.
Rubya Haider’s 44 and another's unbeaten 66 runs off 80 deliveries took Bangladesh to their record total against the Australians, but the target was made to look straightforward by a team who had chased down 330 against the Indian side a few days earlier.
“It's fantastic when you’ve got the ‘Q’ next to your name in a World Cup,” remarked player-of-the-match Alana King. “No doubt it won't end here. We anticipate going back to Indore to take on England and the Proteas.”
