The Australian skipper has produced brilliant consecutive hundreds to lead her squad into the semi-finals of the Women's Cricket World Cup, inspiring them to a dominant 10-wicket win over Bangladesh.
The wicketkeeper-batter remained not out on 113 runs, coming just a few days after her similarly brilliant 142 that defeated the Indian team at the same Visakhapatnam venue. This time, she shared an unbroken 200-run first-wicket stand with her opening partner (84 not out) to chase to their target of 199 runs in just 24.5 overs.
“I thought I was a not at my best with the gloves, and perhaps a bit as skipper as well today, but we’ll take the win and move on,” Healy remarked.
Interestingly, the supreme professionalism of the day's run-chase as the pair put on 202 followed possibly the team's poorest display in the fielding department under the captain's stewardship, with the captain scolding herself in particular for dropping two of the six catches that were missed.
“I felt somewhat let down with my glovework, and I needed to compensate with the batting, and fortunately got the job done,” she added.
Since data was first recorded on fielding metrics in 2013, the half-dozen dropped opportunities represented Australia’s worst fielding showing at a World Cup tournament.
“Maybe it’s just that time of the competition – we’ve been here a little while, and it’s an issue we’ll review,” Healy said.
It helped the opposition to eke out 9-198 after they had opted to bat, their highest total in an ODI against the Aussies, with Sobhana Mostary scoring the first half-century ever for the Asian side against the world champions.
But Alana King mesmeric continuous 10-over bowling performance, in which she claimed two wickets for 18 runs with four maiden overs, was vital to ensuring Australia’s chase remained manageable.
Healy Pleased with Victory that Seals Semi-Final Place
The Australian skipper was pleased to learn that the victory, which places her undefeated team top of the group table on nine points after four victories and a abandoned match, secures them a place in the semi-finals. “That’s really cool,” she exclaimed.
The 35-year-old captain sped to her century off just 73 balls, the quickest century of the World Cup, and finished with 20 fours off the 77 deliveries she faced as she accelerated from her partner in the latter stages in the innings after they had gone almost boundary-for-boundary towards their half-centuries.
Litchfield Impresses with Maiden World Cup Fifty
The young batter Litchfield hit 12 boundaries and a six, getting to her first World Cup half-century off 46 balls shortly after her partner got there off 43. They went on to record the third-highest partnership by any Aussie pair at a World Cup event.
In the first innings, during the subpar fielding display, Healy dropped the simplest of edges off a teammate and also failed to grasp a difficult lofted one off another bowler. Frustratingly, she also take a clear catch off Brown but failed to review when the official turned down their appeal.
The reinstated Darcie Brown bowled the quickest balls at the tournament so far but was still the Aussies’ most expensive bowling option, conceding 0-52 off her nine overs.
Spinners Excel as Alana King Leads
In contrast, the slow bowlers thrived, spearheaded by Alana King, whose performance could have been even more productive if a fielder hadn’t dropped one in the slips.
Other spinners Georgia Wareham (two for 22 off seven overs) and Ash Gardner (2-48 off nine) both chipped in, while Annabel Sutherland consolidated her position as the competition's top wicket-taker with her two for 41, taking her total to thirteen.
A batter's 44 runs and Mostary’s unbeaten 66 runs off 80 balls took the team to their record score against the Aussies, but the target was made to look straightforward by a team who had successfully pursued 330 runs against the Indian side a few days before.
“It's great when you’ve got the ‘Q’ next to your name in a global tournament,” remarked star performer King. “No doubt it doesn’t stop here. We anticipate going back to the next venue to face the English team and South Africa.”
