The Australian skipper has executed brilliant consecutive centuries to steer her team into the semi-finals of the World Cup, inspiring them to a dominant 10-wicket victory over Bangladesh.
The wicketkeeper-batter remained not out on 113, coming just a few days after her equally impressive 142-run knock that defeated hosts India at the identical Vizag stadium. This time, she shared an undefeated double-century opening partnership with her opening partner (84 not out) to race to their target of 199 runs in just 24.5 deliveries.
“I thought I was a below par with the gloves, and probably a little bit as skipper as well tonight, but we’ll take the win and progress,” she said.
Ironically, the utmost expertise of Thursday’s run-chase as the pair put on 202 runs followed possibly the team's shoddiest performance in the field under the captain's stewardship, with the skipper scolding herself in especial for dropping two of the six catches that went down.
“I was a little bit disappointed with my glovework, and I needed to compensate with the bat, and fortunately got the job done,” she added.
From the time statistics was first taken on fielding performance metrics in 2013, the six missed opportunities marked Australia’s poorest fielding display at a Women’s World Cup.
“Perhaps it’s just that time of the tournament – we’ve been here a little while, and it’s an issue we’ll analyze,” the captain commented.
It helped the opposition to manage 9-198 after they had opted to bat first, their highest total in an One-Day International against Australia, with Sobhana Mostary scoring the maiden half-century ever for the Bangladeshi team against the reigning champions.
But the spinner's spellbinding continuous ten-over bowling performance, in which she took two wickets for 18 runs with four maidens, was crucial to ensuring Australia’s chase wasn’t too challenging.
Healy Pleased with Win that Seals Semi-Final Place
Healy was thrilled to learn that the triumph, which places her unbeaten team at the top of the standings on nine points after four victories and a abandoned match, secures them a place in the last-four. “That’s really cool,” she said.
The 35-year-old skipper sped to her century off just 73 deliveries, the fastest century of the World Cup, and ended with 20 boundaries off the 77 balls she confronted as she pulled away from her partner later in the knock after they had gone practically boundary-for-boundary towards their fifties.
The Opener Impresses with Maiden World Cup Half-Century
Left-hander Phoebe Litchfield hit 12 fours and a six, getting to her first tournament fifty off 46 balls shortly after Healy reached hers off 43. They went on to achieve the third-highest partnership by any Aussie duo at a World Cup event.
Earlier, during the subpar fielding display, the captain spilled the simplest of chances off Darcie Brown and also failed to grasp a difficult skied one off Annabel Sutherland. Frustratingly, she also take a clear catch off the same bowler but didn’t have it reviewed when the official rejected their appeal.
The reinstated Darcie Brown sent down the fastest deliveries at the World Cup so far but was still the Aussies’ costliest bowler, conceding 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spin Attack Excel as King Stars
Instead, the slow bowlers excelled, spearheaded by Alana King, whose spell could have been more successful if a fielder hadn’t dropped one in the slips.
Other spinners Wareham (two for 22 off seven overs) and Ash Gardner (two for 48 off nine) both chipped in, while Sutherland strengthened her position as the competition's leading 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 Bangladesh to their highest-ever total against the Australians, but the total was rendered easy meat by a side who had successfully pursued 330 runs against the Indian side four days earlier.
“It's fantastic when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a global tournament,” remarked star performer Alana King. “Certainly it doesn’t stop here. We look forward to going back to the next venue to face England and South Africa.”
