The Australian skipper has delivered superb consecutive hundreds to guide her team into the last four of the World Cup, motivating them to a dominant comprehensive victory over their opponents.
The wicketkeeper-batter remained unbeaten on 113, coming just four days after her similarly stellar 142-run knock that saw off the Indian team at the same Visakhapatnam venue. This time, she shared an undefeated double-century opening partnership with her opening partner (84no) to race to their target of 199 in just 24.5 deliveries.
“I felt I was a not at my best with the gloves, and probably a little bit as skipper as well tonight, but we’ll accept the two points and move on,” she said.
Interestingly, the supreme professionalism of Thursday’s run-chase as the pair put on 202 runs came after possibly Australia’s shoddiest performance in the field under Healy’s leadership, with the skipper 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 needed to compensate with the bat, and fortunately succeeded,” Healy continued.
Since statistics was first taken on fielding performance metrics in the year 2013, the six missed catches represented Australia’s worst fielding showing at a Women’s World Cup.
“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 Bangladesh to manage 198 for 9 after they had opted to bat, their best-ever total in an One-Day International against Australia, with Sobhana Mostary compiling the maiden fifty ever for the Asian side against the world champions.
But Alana King mesmeric continuous ten-over spell, in which she claimed 2-18 with four maiden overs, was key to ensuring the team's chase wasn’t too challenging.
Healy Pleased with Victory that Seals Semi-Final Place
The Australian skipper was thrilled to discover that the triumph, which puts her undefeated team at the top of the standings on nine points after four wins and a abandoned match, guarantees them a place in the last-four. “That’s really cool,” she said.
The 35-year-old captain raced to her hundred off just 73 balls, the fastest hundred of the World Cup, 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.
The Opener Shines with First Tournament Half-Century
The young batter Phoebe Litchfield hit 12 boundaries and one maximum, reaching to her maiden World Cup fifty off 46 balls shortly after her partner got there off 43. They went on to record the third-best stand by any Aussie duo at a Women’s World Cup.
Earlier, during the sluggish fielding effort, the captain dropped the simplest of edges off Darcie Brown and also was unable to hold on to a tough skied one off Annabel Sutherland. Frustratingly, she also did take a clear chance off the same bowler but failed to review when the official turned down their shout.
The reinstated Brown bowled the fastest balls at the tournament so far but was still the team's costliest bowling option, conceding 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spin Attack Thrive as King Stars
In contrast, the spinners thrived, led by Alana King, whose spell could have been more successful if a fielder hadn’t missed one in the slip cordon.
Fellow spin bowlers Wareham (2-22 off seven overs) and Ash Gardner (2-48 off nine) both chipped in, while Annabel Sutherland consolidated her standing as the competition's leading wicket-taker with her 2-41, taking her total to thirteen.
A batter's 44 and Mostary’s not out 66 runs off 80 deliveries took the team to their record total against the Aussies, but the target was made to look straightforward by a team who had chased down 330 runs against the Indian side a few days earlier.
“It's fantastic when you’ve got the ‘Q’ next to your name in a World Cup,” said player-of-the-match Alana King. “No doubt it won't end here. We look forward to going back to the next venue to face the English team and the Proteas.”
