The Australian skipper has delivered superb consecutive centuries to guide her team into the semi-finals of the World Cup, motivating them to a commanding comprehensive win over their opponents.
The wicketkeeper-batter remained unbeaten on 113 runs, arriving just four days after her similarly brilliant 142-run knock that saw off hosts India at the identical Vizag venue. This time, she combined in an unbroken 200-run first-wicket stand with Phoebe Litchfield (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 probably a bit as skipper as well tonight, but we’ll take the win and move on,” Healy remarked.
Interestingly, the supreme expertise of Thursday’s chase as the pair put on 202 followed possibly Australia’s weakest performance in the field under the captain's leadership, with the captain scolding herself in particular for dropping a couple of the six chances that were missed.
“I was a little bit disappointed with my wicketkeeping, and I had a little bit to make up for with the bat, and luckily succeeded,” Healy continued.
From the time data was first taken on fielding performance metrics in 2013, the six missed opportunities represented Australia’s poorest fielding display at a World Cup tournament.
“Perhaps it’s just that time of the competition – we’ve been here a while, and it’s an issue we’ll analyze,” the captain commented.
It helped the opposition to eke out 198 for 9 after they had chosen to bat first, their highest score in an One-Day International against the Aussies, with a key batter compiling the maiden fifty ever for the Asian side against the world champions.
But Alana King spellbinding unbroken 10-over bowling performance, in which she claimed two wickets for 18 runs with four maiden overs, was crucial to ensuring Australia’s target remained manageable.
Healy Pleased with Victory that Seals Knockout Spot
Healy was thrilled to discover that the victory, which places her undefeated team at the 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 fantastic,” she exclaimed.
The 35-year-old skipper sped to her century off just 73 deliveries, the fastest hundred of the World Cup, and finished with 20 boundaries off the 77 balls she faced as she pulled away from her partner later in the innings after they had gone practically boundary-for-boundary towards their fifties.
The Opener Impresses with First Tournament Fifty
Left-hander Phoebe Litchfield hit 12 boundaries and one maximum, getting to her maiden World Cup half-century off 46 deliveries soon after her partner got there off 43. They went on to record the third-highest stand by any Australian duo at a World Cup event.
Earlier, during the subpar fielding effort, the captain spilled the easiest of edges off Darcie Brown and also failed to grasp a difficult lofted one off Annabel Sutherland. Frustratingly, she also did take a clean chance off the same bowler but didn’t have it reviewed when the umpire rejected their appeal.
The recalled Brown sent down the quickest balls at the World Cup so far but was still the team's most expensive bowling option, conceding 0-52 off her nine overs.
Spin Attack Thrive as King Stars
In contrast, the slow bowlers excelled, led by King, whose spell could have been even more productive if a fielder hadn’t dropped one in the slips.
Other spin bowlers Wareham (two for 22 off seven overs) and Gardner (two for 48 off nine) both contributed, while Sutherland consolidated her standing as the competition's top wicket-taker with her 2-41, bringing her tally to 13.
A batter's 44 runs and Mostary’s not out 66 runs off 80 balls took Bangladesh to their highest-ever score against the Aussies, but the target was made to look easy meat by a team who had successfully pursued 330 against the Indian side a few days before.
“It's fantastic when you’ve got the ‘Q’ next to your name in a global tournament,” remarked player-of-the-match Alana King. “Certainly it doesn’t stop here. We look forward to going back to Indore to face the English team and South Africa.”
