The Australian skipper has produced brilliant back-to-back centuries to lead her team into the last four of the Women's Cricket World Cup, driving them to a commanding comprehensive trouncing over Bangladesh.
The wicketkeeper-batter remained unbeaten on 113, arriving just four days after her similarly impressive 142 that saw off the Indian team at the same Visakhapatnam venue. This time, she shared an undefeated 200-run opening partnership with her opening partner (84no) to race to their target of 199 runs in just under 25 overs.
“I felt I was a little bit poor with the gloves, and perhaps a bit as skipper as well tonight, but we’ll accept the win and progress,” she said.
Interestingly, the utmost professionalism of Thursday’s run-chase as the duo added 202 followed possibly the team's shoddiest display in the fielding department under the captain's stewardship, with the skipper criticizing herself in particular for dropping two of the half-dozen catches that were missed.
“I felt somewhat let down with my wicketkeeping, and I needed to compensate with the batting, and luckily succeeded,” she added.
Since data was initially recorded on fielding statistics in the year 2013, the six dropped catches represented the team's worst fielding display 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 said.
This allowed the opposition to eke out 198 for 9 after they had opted to bat first, their highest total in an ODI against Australia, with a key batter compiling the first fifty ever for the Bangladeshi team against the world champions.
But the spinner's spellbinding unbroken ten-over spell, in which she claimed 2-18 with four maiden overs, was vital to making sure the team's target wasn’t too challenging.
Healy Delighted with Win that Confirms Knockout Spot
The Australian skipper was pleased to learn that the triumph, which places her unbeaten team at the top of the group table on nine points after four victories and a wash-out, guarantees them a berth in the semi-finals. “That’s really cool,” she exclaimed.
The 35-year-old skipper sped to her hundred off just 73 balls, the fastest century of the World Cup, and finished with 20 boundaries off the 77 deliveries she confronted as she pulled away from Litchfield in the latter stages in the innings after they had gone almost shot for shot towards their half-centuries.
The Opener Shines with First Tournament Half-Century
The young batter Phoebe Litchfield struck 12 boundaries and a six, getting to her first tournament fifty off 46 deliveries shortly after her partner got there off 43 balls. They went on to record the third-best stand by any Australian pair at a World Cup event.
Earlier, during the subpar fielding effort, Healy dropped the easiest of edges off Darcie Brown and also failed to grasp a difficult lofted one off another bowler. Annoyingly, she also take a clean chance off the same bowler but failed to review when the umpire turned down their shout.
The reinstated Brown bowled the quickest deliveries at the World Cup so far but was nonetheless the Aussies’ most expensive bowling option, conceding 0-52 off her nine overs.
Spinners Thrive as Alana King Stars
Instead, the slow bowlers thrived, led by Alana King, whose spell could have been even more productive if Beth Mooney hadn’t missed one in the slips.
Fellow spinners Wareham (two for 22 off seven) and Ash Gardner (2-48 off nine) both contributed, while Sutherland consolidated her standing as the competition's leading wicket-taker with her 2-41, taking her tally to thirteen.
A batter's 44 and Mostary’s unbeaten 66 off 80 balls took Bangladesh to their highest-ever total against the Australians, but the target was rendered straightforward by a side who had chased down 330 runs against the Indian side a few days earlier.
“It's fantastic when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a global tournament,” remarked player-of-the-match King. “Certainly it doesn’t stop here. We anticipate returning to the next venue to take on England and the Proteas.”
