The Australian skipper has produced superb consecutive hundreds to steer her squad into the semi-finals of the World Cup, driving them to a dominant 10-wicket win over their opponents.
Healy remained unbeaten on 113, arriving just four days after her similarly brilliant 142 that defeated the Indian team at the same Vizag venue. This time, she combined in an undefeated 200-run opening partnership with Phoebe Litchfield (84no) to dash to their target of 199 runs in just under 25 deliveries.
“I felt I was a little bit poor behind the stumps, and probably a little bit as captain as well tonight, but we’ll accept the win and move on,” she said.
Ironically, the supreme expertise of the day's chase as the pair added 202 followed perhaps Australia’s weakest 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 went down.
“I was a little bit disappointed with my wicketkeeping, and I needed to compensate with the bat, and fortunately delivered,” she added.
From the time data was first taken on fielding metrics in 2013, the six dropped opportunities represented 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 little while, and it’s an issue we’ll analyze,” Healy said.
It helped Bangladesh to eke out 198 for 9 after they had chosen to bat first, their best-ever total in an ODI against Australia, with Sobhana Mostary scoring the maiden half-century ever for the Asian side against the reigning champions.
But Alana King mesmeric continuous 10-over bowling performance, in which she took two wickets for 18 runs with four maidens, was vital to ensuring the team's chase wasn’t too challenging.
Healy Delighted with Win that Seals Knockout Spot
Healy was pleased to discover that the triumph, which places her unbeaten side at the 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 really cool,” she said.
The 35-year-old skipper sped to her hundred off just 73 deliveries, the quickest hundred of the tournament, and ended with 20 fours off the 77 deliveries she confronted as she pulled away from Litchfield later in the innings after they had gone almost shot for shot towards their fifties.
Litchfield Shines with Maiden Tournament Half-Century
Left-hander Litchfield struck 12 boundaries and a six, reaching to her first tournament fifty off 46 deliveries soon after Healy got there off 43 balls. They went on to record the third-highest stand by any Aussie pair at a World Cup event.
In the first innings, during the subpar fielding effort, Healy dropped the easiest of chances off a teammate and also failed to hold on to a difficult lofted one off Annabel Sutherland. Annoyingly, she also did take a clear chance off the same bowler but failed to review when the official rejected their shout.
The recalled Brown bowled the fastest deliveries at the World Cup so far but was nonetheless the team's most expensive bowling option, conceding 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spin Attack Thrive as Alana King Leads
In contrast, the spinners thrived, spearheaded by Alana King, whose performance could have been more successful if a fielder hadn’t missed one in the slip cordon.
Other spinners Wareham (2-22 off seven) and Ash Gardner (two for 48 off nine overs) both contributed, while Sutherland consolidated her standing as the tournament’s leading wicket-taker with her two for 41, bringing her tally to thirteen.
Rubya Haider’s 44 runs and another's not out 66 runs off 80 balls took the team to their highest-ever total against the Aussies, but the target was rendered easy meat by a team who had successfully pursued 330 against the Indian side a few days earlier.
“It's fantastic when you’ve got the ‘Q’ next to your name in a global tournament,” said star performer King. “Certainly it doesn’t stop here. We anticipate going back to the next venue to face the English team and the Proteas.”
