The Australian skipper has delivered outstanding consecutive hundreds to steer her squad into the last four of the Women's Cricket World Cup, motivating them to a merciless 10-wicket win over Bangladesh.
The wicketkeeper-batter finished not out on 113 runs, arriving just a few days after her equally stellar 142-run knock that defeated hosts India at the same Vizag venue. This time, she combined in an unbroken double-century first-wicket stand with Phoebe Litchfield (84no) to dash to their goal of 199 in just under 25 deliveries.
“I felt I was a not at my best with the gloves, and perhaps a little bit as skipper as well tonight, but we’ll accept the win and move on,” Healy remarked.
Interestingly, the utmost expertise of the day's chase as the duo added 202 followed possibly Australia’s weakest performance in the field under Healy’s stewardship, with the captain scolding herself in particular for dropping a couple of the half-dozen catches that went down.
“I was a little bit disappointed with my glovework, and I had a little bit to make up for with the batting, and luckily delivered,” she added.
Since statistics was first taken on fielding metrics in the year 2013, the six missed opportunities represented the team's poorest fielding showing at a World Cup tournament.
“Maybe it’s just that phase of the tournament – we’ve been here a while, and it’s something we’ll review,” Healy said.
This allowed the opposition to manage 198 for 9 after they had opted to bat first, their best-ever score in an One-Day International against Australia, with a key batter compiling the maiden half-century ever for the Bangladeshi team against the world champions.
But the spinner's 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 wasn’t too challenging.
The Captain Delighted with Win that Confirms Semi-Final Spot
Healy was thrilled to learn that the victory, which puts her unbeaten side top of the standings on nine points after four victories and a abandoned match, guarantees them a place in the semi-finals. “That's great news,” she exclaimed.
The experienced skipper sped to her hundred off just 73 deliveries, the quickest century of the World Cup, and ended with 20 boundaries off the 77 deliveries she confronted as she accelerated from her partner later in the knock after they had gone practically boundary-for-boundary towards their fifties.
Litchfield Impresses with Maiden Tournament Half-Century
Left-hander Litchfield struck 12 fours and a six, getting to her first tournament fifty off 46 deliveries soon after her partner reached hers off 43. They went on to record the third-best stand by any Aussie pair at a World Cup event.
In the first innings, during the sluggish fielding display, the captain dropped the simplest of chances off a teammate and also failed to hold on to a tough lofted one off another bowler. Frustratingly, she also did take a clean chance off the same bowler but didn’t have it reviewed when the umpire rejected their shout.
The recalled Darcie Brown bowled the fastest balls at the tournament so far but was nonetheless the Aussies’ costliest bowling option, going for 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spinners Thrive as King Leads
Instead, the slow bowlers excelled, led by King, whose spell could have been even more productive if a fielder hadn’t missed one in the slips.
Fellow spinners Wareham (two for 22 off seven) and Gardner (two for 48 off nine) both contributed, while Annabel Sutherland consolidated her position as the competition's leading wicket-taker with her two for 41, taking her total to thirteen.
A batter's 44 runs and another's unbeaten 66 off 80 balls took the team to their highest-ever score against the Australians, but the target was made to look easy meat by a side who had successfully pursued 330 runs against India four days before.
“It's fantastic when you’ve got the ‘Q’ next to your name in a World Cup,” said star performer King. “Certainly it won't end here. We anticipate going back to Indore to face England and the Proteas.”
