The Australian skipper has produced superb back-to-back hundreds to steer her team into the last four of the World Cup, driving them to a commanding comprehensive victory over Bangladesh.
Healy remained unbeaten on 113, arriving just four days after her similarly brilliant 142-run knock that defeated hosts India at the identical Visakhapatnam stadium. This time, she shared an undefeated double-century first-wicket stand with her opening partner (84no) to chase to their target of 199 in just 24.5 overs.
“I felt I was a little bit poor behind the stumps, and perhaps a bit as captain as well today, but we’ll take the win and move on,” she said.
Interestingly, the supreme expertise of the day's chase as the duo put on 202 runs followed perhaps Australia’s weakest display in the field under Healy’s leadership, with the skipper criticizing herself in especial for spilling two of the half-dozen catches that went down.
“I felt somewhat let down with my glovework, and I needed to compensate with the batting, and fortunately succeeded,” Healy continued.
Since data was initially recorded on fielding metrics in 2013, the half-dozen dropped catches represented Australia’s worst fielding display at a World Cup tournament.
“Perhaps it’s just that phase of the competition – we’ve been here a little while, and it’s something we’ll analyze,” the captain said.
It helped Bangladesh to manage 198 for 9 after they had opted to bat first, their best-ever score in an One-Day International against Australia, with Sobhana Mostary compiling the maiden fifty ever for the Asian side against the world champions.
But the spinner's mesmeric unbroken 10-over bowling performance, in which she took 2-18 with four maiden overs, was crucial to ensuring the team's target remained manageable.
The Captain Delighted with Win that Confirms Knockout Spot
The Australian skipper was thrilled to discover that the triumph, which places her unbeaten team top of the standings on nine points after four victories and a wash-out, secures them a place in the last-four. “That’s really cool,” she said.
The experienced skipper sped to her hundred off just 73 deliveries, the quickest century of the tournament, and finished with 20 boundaries off the 77 deliveries she faced as she accelerated from her partner later in the innings after they had gone practically boundary-for-boundary towards their fifties.
Litchfield Impresses with First World Cup Fifty
Left-hander Phoebe Litchfield hit 12 boundaries and a six, reaching to her first World Cup fifty off 46 deliveries shortly after Healy reached hers off 43 balls. They went on to record the third-best partnership by any Aussie pair at a World Cup event.
Earlier, during the sluggish fielding effort, the captain dropped the simplest of chances off a teammate and also failed to grasp a tough skied one off Annabel Sutherland. Annoyingly, she also did take a clean catch off the same bowler but failed to review when the umpire rejected their appeal.
The reinstated Brown sent down the quickest deliveries at the tournament so far but was still the Aussies’ costliest bowler, conceding 0-52 off her nine overs.
Spinners Thrive as King Leads
Instead, the spinners thrived, led by King, whose performance could have been more successful if Beth Mooney hadn’t missed one in the slips.
Fellow spin bowlers Georgia Wareham (two for 22 off seven overs) and Gardner (2-48 off nine overs) both contributed, while Sutherland strengthened her position as the tournament’s top wicket-taker with her 2-41, bringing her tally to thirteen.
A batter's 44 runs and Mostary’s unbeaten 66 off 80 balls took the team to their record score against the Australians, but the target was rendered straightforward by a side who had successfully pursued 330 against India a few days before.
“It’s always nice when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a World Cup,” said player-of-the-match King. “Certainly it won't end here. We anticipate returning to Indore to take on England and South Africa.”
