The Australian skipper has delivered superb back-to-back centuries to steer her team into the last four of the World Cup, motivating them to a dominant 10-wicket victory over Bangladesh.
The wicketkeeper-batter remained unbeaten on 113, arriving just four days after her similarly stellar 142 that saw off hosts India at the same Vizag venue. This time, she combined in an undefeated 200-run first-wicket stand with her opening partner (84no) to race to their target of 199 in just 24.5 overs.
“I thought I was a little bit poor with the gloves, and perhaps a bit as skipper as well tonight, but we’ll take the win and move on,” Healy remarked.
Ironically, the utmost expertise of the day's run-chase as the duo put on 202 followed possibly the team's poorest display in the field under the captain's leadership, with the captain scolding herself in especial for spilling a couple of the six catches that went down.
“I was a little bit disappointed with my glovework, and I needed to compensate with the batting, and luckily succeeded,” she added.
Since statistics was first recorded on fielding performance statistics in the year 2013, the six dropped catches marked the team's worst fielding showing at a Women’s World Cup.
“Maybe it’s just that phase of the competition – we’ve been here a while, and it’s something we’ll review,” the captain said.
It helped Bangladesh to eke out 198 for 9 after they had chosen to bat, their highest total in an ODI against Australia, with a key batter scoring the first half-century ever for the Asian side against the reigning champions.
But Alana King spellbinding unbroken 10-over bowling performance, in which she claimed two wickets for 18 runs with four maidens, was key to ensuring the team's chase remained manageable.
Healy Delighted with Win that Seals Knockout Spot
The Australian skipper was thrilled to discover that the triumph, which places her unbeaten side top of the group table on nine points after four wins and a wash-out, guarantees them a berth in the semi-finals. “That’s really cool,” she said.
The 35-year-old captain raced to her century off just 73 deliveries, the quickest hundred of the World Cup, and ended with 20 boundaries off the 77 deliveries she faced as she pulled away from her partner later in the innings after they had gone practically shot for shot towards their fifties.
The Opener Shines with First World Cup Fifty
The young batter Litchfield hit 12 boundaries and a six, getting to her maiden tournament fifty off 46 balls shortly after Healy reached hers off 43 balls. They went on to achieve the third-best partnership by any Australian duo at a World Cup event.
Earlier, during the sluggish fielding display, the captain dropped the simplest of edges off Darcie Brown and also failed to hold on to a difficult lofted one off Annabel Sutherland. Frustratingly, she also take a clean catch off the same bowler but failed to review when the umpire rejected their appeal.
The reinstated Brown sent down the quickest balls at the tournament so far but was still the team's costliest bowler, conceding 0-52 off her nine overs.
Spin Attack Thrive as Alana King Leads
Instead, the spinners thrived, spearheaded by Alana King, whose performance could have been more successful if Beth Mooney hadn’t dropped one in the slips.
Other spin bowlers Georgia Wareham (2-22 off seven) and Gardner (two for 48 off nine overs) both chipped in, while Sutherland consolidated her position as the tournament’s leading wicket-taker with her two for 41, taking her tally to 13.
Rubya Haider’s 44 and Mostary’s unbeaten 66 off 80 balls took Bangladesh to their record total against the Aussies, but the target was rendered straightforward by a team who had chased down 330 runs against the Indian side four days earlier.
“It's great when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a World Cup,” said star performer Alana King. “Certainly it doesn’t stop here. We look forward to returning to Indore to face England and the Proteas.”
