The Australian skipper has produced brilliant consecutive centuries to steer her squad into the semi-finals of the Women's Cricket World Cup, motivating them to a merciless comprehensive victory over Bangladesh.
The wicketkeeper-batter remained not out on 113 runs, coming just four days after her equally stellar 142 that defeated hosts India at the identical Vizag venue. This time, she shared an unbroken double-century opening partnership with her opening partner (84no) to chase to their goal of 199 in just under 25 overs.
“I felt I was a below par behind the stumps, and probably a little bit as skipper as well tonight, but we’ll accept the two points and move on,” she said.
Interestingly, the utmost professionalism of Thursday’s run-chase as the duo added 202 came after possibly Australia’s weakest performance in the field under the captain'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 wicketkeeping, and I needed to compensate with the batting, and fortunately got the job done,” she added.
From the time data was first taken on fielding performance statistics in the year 2013, the half-dozen missed 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 little while, and it’s an issue we’ll reflect on,” the captain said.
It helped Bangladesh to eke out 198 for 9 after they had chosen to bat first, their best-ever total in an One-Day International against the Aussies, with a key batter compiling the maiden fifty ever for the Asian side against the world champions.
But Alana King spellbinding continuous ten-over bowling performance, in which she claimed two wickets for 18 runs with four maidens, was vital to making sure Australia’s chase remained manageable.
The Captain Delighted with Victory that Seals Semi-Final Place
The Australian skipper was pleased to discover that the victory, which places her undefeated side top of the standings on nine points after four victories and a wash-out, guarantees them a berth in the semi-finals. “That's fantastic,” she exclaimed.
The 35-year-old skipper sped to her century off just 73 balls, the quickest hundred of the World Cup, and ended with 20 boundaries off the 77 balls she faced as she accelerated from Litchfield later in the innings after they had gone practically boundary-for-boundary towards their half-centuries.
The Opener Shines with Maiden World Cup Half-Century
Left-hander Phoebe Litchfield struck 12 boundaries and one maximum, reaching to her maiden tournament fifty off 46 balls shortly after Healy reached hers off 43. They went on to record the third-best partnership by any Australian duo at a World Cup event.
Earlier, during the sluggish fielding effort, Healy 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 take a clean catch off the same bowler but didn’t have it reviewed when the umpire turned down their shout.
The recalled Brown sent down the quickest deliveries at the World Cup so far but was nonetheless the team's most expensive bowler, conceding 0-52 off her nine overs.
Spin Attack Thrive as Alana King Stars
In contrast, the slow bowlers thrived, led by King, whose performance could have been even more productive if Beth Mooney hadn’t dropped one in the slips.
Fellow spin bowlers Georgia Wareham (two for 22 off seven) and Ash Gardner (2-48 off nine overs) both chipped in, while Annabel Sutherland strengthened her position as the competition's top wicket-taker with her two for 41, taking her total to thirteen.
Rubya Haider’s 44 runs and another's not out 66 runs off 80 balls took the team to their highest-ever total against the Aussies, but the target was rendered straightforward by a side who had successfully pursued 330 runs against the Indian side a few days earlier.
“It’s always nice when you’ve got the ‘Q’ next to your name in a global tournament,” remarked player-of-the-match King. “No doubt it doesn’t stop here. We look forward to returning to the next venue to face the English team and South Africa.”
