The Australian skipper has produced brilliant back-to-back centuries to steer her team into the semi-finals of the Women's Cricket World Cup, driving them to a dominant comprehensive win over their opponents.
Healy remained not out on 113, arriving just four days after her equally brilliant 142 that saw off hosts India at the same Visakhapatnam stadium. This time, she shared an undefeated 200-run opening partnership with Phoebe Litchfield (84no) to race to their target of 199 runs 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 today, but we’ll take the win and move on,” she said.
Interestingly, the supreme expertise of Thursday’s chase as the duo put on 202 came after perhaps Australia’s weakest display in the fielding department under the captain's stewardship, with the skipper criticizing herself in particular for spilling a couple of the half-dozen catches that went down.
“I was a little bit disappointed with my wicketkeeping, and I needed to compensate with the batting, and fortunately delivered,” Healy continued.
Since statistics was initially recorded on fielding statistics in 2013, the six dropped opportunities represented Australia’s poorest fielding showing at a Women’s World Cup.
“Maybe it’s just that phase of the competition – we’ve been here a little while, and it’s an issue we’ll review,” the captain said.
This allowed the opposition to manage 9-198 after they had opted to bat first, their best-ever total in an ODI against Australia, with Sobhana Mostary scoring the maiden fifty ever for the Bangladeshi team against the reigning champions.
But Alana King mesmeric unbroken ten-over bowling performance, in which she claimed 2-18 with four maidens, was key to making sure the team's target remained manageable.
Healy Pleased with Victory that Seals Semi-Final Spot
Healy was pleased to discover that the triumph, which puts her unbeaten side top of the standings on nine points after four victories and a abandoned match, guarantees them a berth in the last-four. “That's great news,” she said.
The experienced skipper raced to her century off just 73 deliveries, the fastest hundred of the tournament, and finished with 20 boundaries off the 77 deliveries she confronted as she pulled away from Litchfield in the latter stages in the innings after they had gone almost boundary-for-boundary towards their half-centuries.
The Opener Impresses with Maiden World Cup Half-Century
Left-hander Phoebe Litchfield struck 12 boundaries and a six, reaching to her first World Cup fifty off 46 balls shortly after Healy reached hers off 43 balls. They went on to achieve the third-highest partnership by any Australian pair at a Women’s World Cup.
Earlier, during the sluggish fielding display, Healy dropped the easiest of edges off Darcie Brown and also was unable to grasp a tough skied one off Annabel Sutherland. Frustratingly, she also take a clear chance off Brown but failed to review when the official turned down their shout.
The recalled Darcie Brown sent down the fastest balls at the tournament so far but was still the Aussies’ costliest bowling option, conceding 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spinners Thrive as Alana King Leads
Instead, the spinners thrived, spearheaded by King, whose performance could have been even more productive if Beth Mooney hadn’t missed one in the slip cordon.
Fellow spinners Georgia Wareham (two for 22 off seven overs) and Gardner (2-48 off nine overs) both chipped in, while Sutherland consolidated her standing as the competition's leading wicket-taker with her 2-41, taking her total to thirteen.
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 target was rendered easy meat by a team who had chased down 330 runs against the Indian side four days before.
“It’s always nice when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a global tournament,” said player-of-the-match King. “No doubt it won't end here. We anticipate going back to Indore to take on England and South Africa.”
