The Australian skipper has produced brilliant back-to-back hundreds to guide her team into the last four of the World Cup, driving them to a commanding 10-wicket trouncing over Bangladesh.
The wicketkeeper-batter finished not out on 113 runs, coming just four days after her similarly impressive 142 that saw off hosts India at the identical Visakhapatnam stadium. This time, she combined in an undefeated 200-run opening partnership with Phoebe Litchfield (84 not out) to chase to their target of 199 in just 24.5 overs.
“I felt I was a below par with the gloves, and perhaps a little bit as skipper as well today, but we’ll take the two points and move on,” she said.
Ironically, the utmost expertise of the day's chase as the pair added 202 came after perhaps the team's shoddiest performance in the fielding department under Healy’s stewardship, with the captain criticizing herself in particular for spilling a couple of the half-dozen chances that were missed.
“I was a little bit disappointed with my glovework, and I had a little bit to make up for with the batting, and luckily got the job done,” she added.
Since statistics was initially recorded on fielding statistics in the year 2013, the six missed catches represented the team's worst fielding showing at a Women’s World Cup.
“Maybe it’s just that time of the tournament – we’ve been here a little while, and it’s an issue we’ll analyze,” the captain said.
It helped the opposition to eke out 198 for 9 after they had chosen to bat first, their best-ever total in an ODI against Australia, with a key batter compiling the maiden fifty ever for the Bangladeshi team against the reigning champions.
But Alana King spellbinding continuous 10-over spell, in which she claimed 2-18 with four maidens, was crucial to ensuring the team's target wasn’t too challenging.
The Captain Delighted with Win that Confirms Knockout Place
The Australian skipper was delighted to discover that the victory, which places her undefeated side top of the group table on nine points after four victories and a wash-out, secures them a place in the last-four. “That's fantastic,” she said.
The experienced skipper sped to her century off just 73 balls, the fastest century of the tournament, and ended with 20 fours off the 77 balls she confronted as she accelerated from her partner later in the knock after they had gone almost shot for shot towards their fifties.
The Opener Shines with First Tournament Half-Century
The young batter Litchfield hit 12 boundaries and one maximum, reaching to her first World Cup half-century off 46 balls soon after Healy reached hers off 43 balls. They went on to record the third-highest partnership by any Aussie duo at a World Cup event.
Earlier, during the subpar fielding effort, the captain dropped the simplest of edges off Darcie Brown and also failed to hold on to a tough skied one off another bowler. Frustratingly, she also did take a clean chance off the same bowler but failed to review when the umpire rejected their appeal.
The recalled Brown sent down the quickest balls at the World Cup so far but was nonetheless the Aussies’ costliest bowler, conceding 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spin Attack Thrive as King Stars
Instead, the slow bowlers excelled, led by Alana King, whose spell could have been more successful if Beth Mooney hadn’t missed one in the slips.
Fellow spinners Wareham (2-22 off seven) and Ash Gardner (two for 48 off nine overs) both contributed, while Annabel Sutherland strengthened her standing as the tournament’s top wicket-taker with her 2-41, taking her total to 13.
Rubya Haider’s 44 and another's not out 66 runs off 80 deliveries took Bangladesh to their highest-ever score against the Aussies, but the total was rendered easy meat by a side who had chased down 330 against the Indian side four days earlier.
“It’s always nice when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a global tournament,” remarked player-of-the-match Alana King. “No doubt it doesn’t stop here. We look forward to returning to Indore to face England and the Proteas.”
