The Australian skipper has delivered superb back-to-back centuries to steer her squad into the last four of the World Cup, motivating them to a dominant comprehensive victory over their opponents.
The wicketkeeper-batter finished unbeaten on 113, coming just a few days after her equally impressive 142-run knock that saw off the Indian team at the same Visakhapatnam stadium. This time, she combined in an unbroken double-century opening partnership with her opening partner (84 not out) to chase to their goal of 199 in just 24.5 deliveries.
“I thought I was a not at my best behind the stumps, and perhaps a bit as captain as well today, but we’ll accept the win and progress,” she said.
Ironically, the supreme expertise of Thursday’s run-chase as the pair put on 202 runs followed possibly the team's poorest display in the field under Healy’s leadership, with the skipper criticizing herself in especial for spilling two of the six chances that went down.
“I was a little bit disappointed with my glovework, and I needed to compensate with the batting, and fortunately got the job done,” Healy continued.
From the time data was initially taken on fielding statistics in 2013, the half-dozen dropped opportunities marked Australia’s worst fielding showing at a World Cup tournament.
“Maybe it’s just that phase of the tournament – we’ve been here a while, and it’s an issue we’ll reflect on,” Healy said.
It helped the opposition to manage 198 for 9 after they had opted to bat first, their best-ever total in an One-Day International against Australia, with Sobhana Mostary scoring the maiden fifty ever for the Bangladeshi team against the reigning champions.
But the spinner's mesmeric unbroken 10-over spell, in which she claimed two wickets for 18 runs with four maidens, was vital to ensuring the team's target wasn’t too challenging.
Healy Delighted with Victory that Confirms Knockout Spot
Healy was pleased to learn that the victory, which places her unbeaten team top of the group table on nine points after four wins and a abandoned match, guarantees them a place in the semi-finals. “That's fantastic,” she exclaimed.
The 35-year-old skipper raced to her hundred off just 73 balls, the fastest century of the World Cup, and ended with 20 boundaries off the 77 balls she confronted as she accelerated from Litchfield in the latter stages in the knock after they had gone almost boundary-for-boundary towards their fifties.
The Opener Impresses with Maiden World Cup Half-Century
The young batter Phoebe Litchfield struck 12 boundaries and one maximum, reaching to her first tournament fifty off 46 deliveries shortly after Healy got there off 43 balls. They went on to achieve the third-best partnership by any Aussie duo at a World Cup event.
In the first innings, during the sluggish fielding effort, Healy dropped the simplest of edges off Darcie Brown and also was unable to grasp a difficult lofted one off Annabel Sutherland. Frustratingly, she also did take a clean chance off the same bowler but didn’t have it reviewed when the official turned down their shout.
The reinstated Darcie Brown sent down the quickest balls at the tournament so far but was nonetheless the team's most expensive bowler, conceding 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spin Attack Thrive as King Stars
Instead, the slow bowlers excelled, spearheaded by Alana King, whose performance could have been more successful if Beth Mooney hadn’t dropped one in the slip cordon.
Fellow spin bowlers Georgia Wareham (two for 22 off seven overs) and Gardner (two for 48 off nine overs) both chipped in, while Annabel Sutherland strengthened her standing as the tournament’s leading wicket-taker with her 2-41, taking her total to thirteen.
Rubya Haider’s 44 and another's not out 66 off 80 balls took Bangladesh to their highest-ever total against the Australians, but the total was made to look easy meat by a team 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 global tournament,” remarked player-of-the-match King. “Certainly it doesn’t stop here. We look forward to going back to Indore to face England and South Africa.”
