The Australian skipper has delivered brilliant back-to-back centuries to steer her team into the semi-finals of the Women's Cricket World Cup, inspiring them to a dominant 10-wicket win over their opponents.
Healy remained unbeaten on 113, arriving just a few days after her equally brilliant 142 that saw off the Indian team at the identical Visakhapatnam venue. This time, she shared an undefeated 200-run opening partnership with Phoebe Litchfield (84no) to dash to their target of 199 in just 24.5 deliveries.
“I thought I was a little bit poor behind the stumps, and perhaps a little bit as skipper as well today, but we’ll take the two points and progress,” Healy remarked.
Ironically, the supreme expertise of Thursday’s run-chase as the pair put on 202 runs followed perhaps the team's poorest display in the fielding department under Healy’s leadership, with the captain scolding herself in especial for dropping two of the half-dozen catches that were missed.
“I was a little bit disappointed with my glovework, and I needed to compensate with the batting, and luckily delivered,” she added.
Since statistics was first taken on fielding statistics in 2013, the half-dozen missed opportunities represented the team's poorest fielding display at a Women’s World Cup.
“Perhaps it’s just that time of the competition – we’ve been here a little while, and it’s something we’ll review,” Healy said.
This allowed Bangladesh to manage 198 for 9 after they had opted to bat first, their best-ever total in an One-Day International against the Aussies, with a key batter compiling the first fifty ever for the Asian side against the world champions.
But the spinner's mesmeric unbroken ten-over bowling performance, in which she took 2-18 with four maiden overs, was vital to ensuring Australia’s target wasn’t too challenging.
The Captain Pleased with Victory that Seals Knockout Place
Healy was delighted to learn that the victory, which places her unbeaten side top of the group table on nine points after four wins and a abandoned match, secures them a berth in the last-four. “That's fantastic,” she exclaimed.
The experienced skipper sped to her century off just 73 balls, the fastest hundred of the tournament, and finished with 20 fours off the 77 balls she confronted as she pulled away from Litchfield in the latter stages in the innings after they had gone practically shot for shot towards their half-centuries.
The Opener Shines with First World Cup Half-Century
Left-hander Litchfield struck 12 boundaries and one maximum, reaching to her maiden World Cup half-century off 46 balls soon after her partner reached hers off 43 balls. They went on to record the third-highest stand by any Aussie pair at a Women’s World Cup.
Earlier, during the sluggish fielding display, Healy dropped the easiest of chances off Darcie Brown and also was unable to grasp a difficult lofted one off Annabel Sutherland. Frustratingly, she also did take a clear catch off the same bowler but didn’t have it reviewed when the umpire turned down their shout.
The reinstated Brown sent down the fastest balls at the World Cup so far but was still the Aussies’ costliest bowler, going for 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spinners Thrive as Alana King Leads
Instead, the spinners excelled, spearheaded by King, whose spell could have been more successful if Beth Mooney hadn’t dropped one in the slips.
Fellow spin bowlers Georgia Wareham (two for 22 off seven overs) and Gardner (two for 48 off nine) both chipped in, while Annabel Sutherland consolidated her position as the competition's leading wicket-taker with her 2-41, taking her total to thirteen.
A batter's 44 runs and another's not out 66 runs off 80 deliveries took the team to their highest-ever score against the Australians, but the target was rendered easy meat by a team who had chased down 330 runs against the Indian side four days before.
“It's fantastic when you’ve got the ‘Q’ next to your name in a global tournament,” remarked star performer Alana King. “No doubt it doesn’t stop here. We look forward to returning to Indore to take on the English team and the Proteas.”
