The Australian skipper has produced outstanding consecutive hundreds to guide her team into the last four of the World Cup, driving them to a merciless comprehensive trouncing over Bangladesh.
The wicketkeeper-batter finished not out on 113 runs, arriving just a few days after her similarly impressive 142-run knock that saw off hosts India at the same Visakhapatnam venue. This time, she combined in an undefeated 200-run first-wicket stand with her opening partner (84 not out) to dash to their target of 199 in just under 25 deliveries.
“I felt I was a little bit poor behind the stumps, and perhaps a little bit as captain as well today, but we’ll take the two points and move on,” Healy remarked.
Ironically, the supreme expertise of Thursday’s chase as the duo put on 202 runs followed possibly Australia’s weakest display in the fielding department under the captain's stewardship, with the captain criticizing herself in particular for dropping two of the six chances that went down.
“I felt somewhat let down with my wicketkeeping, and I needed to compensate with the bat, and fortunately got the job done,” she added.
From the time statistics was initially recorded on fielding statistics in the year 2013, the half-dozen dropped catches marked Australia’s poorest fielding display at a Women’s World Cup.
“Maybe it’s just that phase of the tournament – we’ve been here a while, and it’s an issue we’ll analyze,” the captain commented.
It helped Bangladesh to manage 9-198 after they had chosen to bat, their highest score in an ODI against the Aussies, with Sobhana Mostary compiling the maiden half-century ever for the Asian side against the world champions.
But the spinner's mesmeric continuous 10-over spell, in which she claimed 2-18 with four maiden overs, was crucial to ensuring the team's target wasn’t too challenging.
The Captain Pleased with Victory that Confirms Semi-Final Place
The Australian skipper was pleased to learn that the triumph, which puts her undefeated side top of the group table on nine points after four wins and a abandoned match, secures them a place in the last-four. “That’s really cool,” she exclaimed.
The 35-year-old skipper sped to her hundred off just 73 balls, the quickest century of the tournament, and finished with 20 boundaries off the 77 deliveries she confronted as she pulled away from her partner in the latter stages in the innings after they had gone practically boundary-for-boundary towards their fifties.
Litchfield Shines with Maiden World Cup Half-Century
The young batter Phoebe Litchfield hit 12 boundaries and a six, reaching to her maiden tournament fifty off 46 balls shortly after Healy got there off 43. They went on to achieve the third-best stand by any Australian duo at a World Cup event.
Earlier, during the subpar fielding display, Healy dropped the simplest of chances off Darcie Brown and also was unable to hold on to a tough skied one off another bowler. Annoyingly, she also did take a clean catch off Brown but failed to review when the umpire turned down their shout.
The reinstated Brown bowled the quickest deliveries at the tournament so far but was still the team's costliest bowler, conceding 0-52 off her nine overs.
Spin Attack Excel as King Stars
In contrast, the spinners thrived, spearheaded by Alana King, whose performance could have been even more productive if Beth Mooney hadn’t dropped one in the slips.
Other spin bowlers Georgia Wareham (2-22 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 two for 41, taking her tally to 13.
A batter's 44 runs and another's not out 66 off 80 balls took Bangladesh to their record score against the Australians, but the total was made to look straightforward by a side who had chased down 330 runs against India four days earlier.
“It's fantastic when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a World Cup,” remarked player-of-the-match King. “No doubt it doesn’t stop here. We anticipate returning to Indore to take on England and South Africa.”
