The Australian skipper has delivered superb consecutive hundreds to lead her squad into the semi-finals of the Women's Cricket World Cup, motivating them to a dominant 10-wicket trouncing over Bangladesh.
The wicketkeeper-batter finished not out on 113 runs, arriving just four days after her equally stellar 142-run knock that defeated hosts India at the same Visakhapatnam stadium. This time, she combined in an undefeated double-century opening partnership with her opening partner (84 not out) to chase to their goal of 199 in just 24.5 overs.
“I thought I was a little bit poor behind the stumps, and perhaps a little bit as captain as well tonight, but we’ll take the two points and move on,” Healy remarked.
Ironically, the utmost expertise of Thursday’s run-chase as the duo put on 202 runs came after possibly Australia’s weakest display in the fielding department under the captain's stewardship, with the skipper criticizing herself in particular for spilling two of the six catches that were missed.
“I was a little bit disappointed with my glovework, and I needed to compensate with the batting, and luckily got the job done,” she added.
From the time data was first recorded on fielding statistics in the year 2013, the six missed opportunities marked the team's poorest fielding showing at a Women’s World Cup.
“Perhaps it’s just that phase of the competition – we’ve been here a little while, and it’s something we’ll reflect on,” the captain said.
This allowed the opposition to eke out 9-198 after they had chosen to bat first, their best-ever total in an One-Day International against Australia, with a key batter compiling the first fifty ever for the Asian side against the world champions.
But Alana King mesmeric unbroken ten-over spell, in which she took 2-18 with four maiden overs, was key to ensuring the team's target remained manageable.
Healy Delighted with Victory that Seals Semi-Final Spot
Healy was delighted to discover that the triumph, which puts her unbeaten team top of the standings on nine points after four wins and a wash-out, secures them a place in the last-four. “That's great news,” she said.
The experienced captain sped to her century off just 73 balls, the quickest century of the tournament, and finished with 20 fours off the 77 balls she confronted as she accelerated from her partner in the latter stages in the innings after they had gone practically shot for shot towards their half-centuries.
The Opener Shines with First World Cup Half-Century
The young batter Phoebe Litchfield hit 12 fours and one maximum, reaching to her first tournament half-century off 46 balls soon after her partner reached hers off 43 balls. They went on to achieve the third-best stand by any Australian duo at a Women’s World Cup.
In the first innings, during the sluggish fielding display, Healy dropped the easiest of chances off a teammate and also failed to grasp a tough skied one off another bowler. Annoyingly, she also take a clear chance off Brown but didn’t have it reviewed when the official rejected their appeal.
The reinstated Brown sent down the quickest deliveries at the World Cup so far but was still the Aussies’ most expensive bowling option, conceding 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spin Attack Excel as Alana King Leads
Instead, the slow bowlers thrived, spearheaded by King, whose spell could have been even more productive if Beth Mooney hadn’t missed one in the slips.
Fellow spin bowlers Georgia Wareham (2-22 off seven overs) and Gardner (2-48 off nine) both chipped in, while Annabel Sutherland consolidated her position as the competition's leading wicket-taker with her two for 41, bringing her tally to 13.
Rubya Haider’s 44 runs and another's not out 66 off 80 deliveries took the team to their highest-ever total against the Aussies, but the total was rendered easy meat by a side who had chased down 330 runs against India four days before.
“It's great when you’ve got the ‘Q’ next to your name in a global tournament,” remarked player-of-the-match Alana King. “Certainly it won't end here. We anticipate going back to the next venue to take on England and the Proteas.”
