The Australian skipper has produced outstanding back-to-back centuries to guide her squad into the last four of the Women's Cricket World Cup, motivating them to a merciless comprehensive win over their opponents.
The wicketkeeper-batter remained unbeaten on 113 runs, arriving just a few days after her equally brilliant 142-run knock that saw off the Indian team at the identical Vizag venue. This time, she shared an undefeated 200-run opening partnership with her opening partner (84no) to chase to their goal of 199 in just 24.5 overs.
“I thought I was a not at my best with the gloves, and probably a bit as skipper as well tonight, but we’ll take the win and progress,” she said.
Ironically, the utmost expertise of the day's chase as the pair added 202 runs came after possibly Australia’s shoddiest display in the field under the captain's stewardship, with the skipper scolding herself in particular for dropping a couple of the half-dozen catches that were missed.
“I felt somewhat let down with my glovework, and I had a little bit to make up for with the batting, and luckily delivered,” she added.
From the time statistics was first recorded on fielding performance metrics in 2013, the six dropped opportunities marked the team's worst fielding showing at a World Cup tournament.
“Perhaps it’s just that time of the tournament – we’ve been here a while, and it’s an issue we’ll reflect on,” Healy commented.
It helped Bangladesh to manage 198 for 9 after they had chosen to bat first, their highest score in an ODI against the Aussies, with a key batter scoring the maiden half-century ever for the Asian side against the reigning champions.
But Alana King mesmeric unbroken 10-over bowling performance, in which she claimed two wickets for 18 runs with four maiden overs, was key to ensuring the team's chase remained manageable.
The Captain Pleased with Victory that Seals Semi-Final Place
The Australian skipper was delighted to discover that the triumph, which places her unbeaten side at the top of the standings on nine points after four victories and a abandoned match, guarantees them a place in the last-four. “That’s really cool,” she exclaimed.
The experienced skipper sped to her century off just 73 deliveries, the fastest hundred of the tournament, and finished with 20 fours off the 77 deliveries she confronted as she accelerated from Litchfield in the latter stages in the knock after they had gone practically boundary-for-boundary towards their fifties.
The Opener Shines with Maiden World Cup Fifty
Left-hander Litchfield hit 12 fours and a six, getting to her maiden World Cup half-century off 46 balls soon after Healy reached hers off 43. They went on to achieve the third-highest partnership by any Aussie duo at a World Cup event.
Earlier, during the subpar fielding effort, the captain spilled the easiest of chances off Darcie Brown and also failed to grasp a difficult lofted one off Annabel Sutherland. Annoyingly, she also take a clear chance off Brown but failed to review when the official turned down their appeal.
The reinstated Darcie Brown sent down the quickest deliveries at the tournament so far but was still the Aussies’ most expensive bowler, conceding 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spinners Excel as King Stars
Instead, the spinners excelled, spearheaded by Alana King, whose spell could have been even more productive if Beth Mooney hadn’t missed one in the slip cordon.
Other spinners Wareham (two for 22 off seven overs) and Gardner (2-48 off nine overs) both contributed, while Sutherland strengthened her position as the tournament’s leading wicket-taker with her two for 41, bringing her tally to 13.
A batter's 44 and another's unbeaten 66 runs off 80 deliveries took the team to their record total against the Australians, but the total was made to look easy meat by a team who had successfully pursued 330 runs against the Indian side four days before.
“It's fantastic when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a World Cup,” remarked star performer Alana King. “No doubt it won't end here. We anticipate returning to Indore to face England and the Proteas.”
