The Australian skipper has produced superb back-to-back centuries to guide her team into the semi-finals of the Women's Cricket World Cup, driving them to a dominant 10-wicket victory over Bangladesh.
Healy finished not out on 113 runs, coming just four days after her similarly brilliant 142 that saw off the Indian team at the same Visakhapatnam stadium. This time, she shared an unbroken 200-run opening partnership with her opening partner (84no) to chase to their goal of 199 runs in just under 25 deliveries.
“I thought I was a little bit poor with the gloves, and perhaps a little bit as captain as well today, but we’ll take the two points and move on,” Healy remarked.
Interestingly, the utmost professionalism of Thursday’s chase as the duo added 202 runs followed possibly the team's poorest performance in the fielding department under the captain's stewardship, with the captain criticizing herself in particular for dropping two of the half-dozen catches that went down.
“I felt somewhat let down with my wicketkeeping, and I needed to compensate with the batting, and luckily delivered,” she added.
From the time statistics was initially taken on fielding metrics in 2013, the half-dozen dropped opportunities represented the team's poorest fielding showing at a World Cup tournament.
“Maybe it’s just that time of the competition – we’ve been here a little while, and it’s an issue we’ll analyze,” the captain commented.
This allowed the opposition to manage 198 for 9 after they had opted to bat first, their best-ever total in an ODI against the Aussies, with a key batter compiling the first half-century ever for the Bangladeshi team against the reigning champions.
But Alana King mesmeric continuous ten-over bowling performance, in which she took two wickets for 18 runs with four maiden overs, was crucial to making sure Australia’s chase remained manageable.
The Captain Pleased with Win that Seals Semi-Final Spot
Healy was thrilled to discover that the victory, which puts her unbeaten side top of the standings on nine points after four wins and a abandoned match, secures them a berth in the last-four. “That’s really cool,” she exclaimed.
The 35-year-old skipper sped to her century off just 73 balls, the quickest century of the World Cup, and finished with 20 fours off the 77 deliveries she confronted as she accelerated from her partner in the latter stages in the knock after they had gone almost shot for shot towards their fifties.
Litchfield Shines with Maiden Tournament Half-Century
Left-hander Phoebe Litchfield struck 12 boundaries and one maximum, reaching to her first tournament fifty off 46 deliveries soon after Healy got there off 43 balls. They went on to record the third-highest partnership by any Aussie duo at a Women’s World Cup.
In the first innings, during the sluggish fielding display, the captain dropped the easiest of edges off a teammate and also was unable to hold on to a tough lofted one off another bowler. Annoyingly, she also did take a clear chance off the same bowler but failed to review when the umpire rejected their appeal.
The recalled Darcie Brown bowled the fastest balls at the World Cup so far but was still the team's costliest bowling option, going for 0-52 off her nine overs.
Spinners Thrive as King Leads
Instead, the slow bowlers thrived, led by Alana King, whose spell could have been more successful if Beth Mooney hadn’t missed one in the slips.
Other spin bowlers Georgia Wareham (2-22 off seven) and Gardner (two for 48 off nine) both chipped in, while Annabel Sutherland consolidated her standing as the competition's leading wicket-taker with her two for 41, bringing her total to thirteen.
A batter's 44 runs and another's unbeaten 66 off 80 deliveries took the team to their highest-ever score against the Australians, but the target was rendered straightforward by a side who had successfully pursued 330 runs against India four days before.
“It's fantastic when you’ve got the ‘Q’ next to your name in a World Cup,” remarked player-of-the-match Alana King. “No doubt it won't end here. We look forward to returning to the next venue to face the English team and South Africa.”