The Australian skipper has executed outstanding back-to-back centuries to guide her team into the last four of the World Cup, inspiring them to a dominant comprehensive win over their opponents.
The wicketkeeper-batter finished unbeaten on 113 runs, arriving just a few days after her equally impressive 142-run knock that defeated hosts India at the same Visakhapatnam venue. This time, she combined in an unbroken double-century opening partnership with her opening partner (84 not out) to chase to their target of 199 runs in just under 25 overs.
“I thought I was a little bit poor with the gloves, and probably a bit as captain as well tonight, but we’ll accept the win and progress,” she said.
Interestingly, the utmost expertise of the day's run-chase as the duo added 202 came after perhaps Australia’s shoddiest display in the field under the captain's stewardship, with the captain scolding herself in particular for dropping a couple of the half-dozen chances that were missed.
“I was a little bit disappointed with my glovework, and I had a little bit to make up for with the bat, and fortunately succeeded,” Healy continued.
From the time data was first taken on fielding performance statistics in the year 2013, the half-dozen missed opportunities represented the team's worst fielding display at a World Cup tournament.
“Maybe it’s just that time of the competition – we’ve been here a while, and it’s something we’ll analyze,” the captain said.
This allowed Bangladesh to manage 198 for 9 after they had chosen to bat, their best-ever total in an One-Day International against the Aussies, with a key batter compiling the first fifty ever for the Bangladeshi team against the reigning champions.
But Alana King spellbinding continuous 10-over spell, in which she claimed two wickets for 18 runs with four maidens, was crucial to ensuring the team's target wasn’t too challenging.
Healy Pleased with Victory that Seals Semi-Final Spot
The Australian skipper was pleased to learn that the triumph, which puts her unbeaten team top of the group table on nine points after four wins and a abandoned match, secures them a berth in the semi-finals. “That's fantastic,” she said.
The experienced skipper raced to her century off just 73 deliveries, the quickest hundred of the World Cup, and ended with 20 fours off the 77 balls she faced as she pulled away from Litchfield in the latter stages in the innings after they had gone practically boundary-for-boundary towards their fifties.
The Opener Impresses with Maiden World Cup Fifty
The young batter Litchfield hit 12 fours and one maximum, getting to her maiden World Cup half-century off 46 balls soon after Healy reached hers off 43 balls. They went on to achieve the third-highest stand by any Aussie pair at a World Cup event.
In the first innings, during the subpar fielding effort, the captain dropped the easiest of edges off Darcie Brown and also failed to hold on to a tough skied one off another bowler. Annoyingly, she also did take a clear chance off the same bowler but didn’t have it reviewed when the umpire turned down their shout.
The recalled Darcie Brown bowled the fastest deliveries at the tournament so far but was still the team's most expensive bowling option, going for 0-52 off her nine overs.
Spin Attack Thrive as King Stars
In contrast, the spinners excelled, led by King, whose spell could have been more successful if Beth Mooney hadn’t dropped one in the slips.
Other spin bowlers Wareham (2-22 off seven overs) and Gardner (2-48 off nine overs) both chipped in, while Sutherland consolidated her standing as the competition's top wicket-taker with her 2-41, taking her total to 13.
Rubya Haider’s 44 and another's not out 66 runs off 80 deliveries took Bangladesh 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 the Indian side a few days earlier.
“It's great 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 anticipate going back to Indore to face the English team and the Proteas.”
