The Australian skipper has produced outstanding back-to-back centuries to steer her team into the semi-finals of the Women's Cricket World Cup, driving them to a merciless 10-wicket win over Bangladesh.
The wicketkeeper-batter finished not out on 113 runs, arriving just a few days after her similarly brilliant 142 that defeated the Indian team at the same Visakhapatnam stadium. This time, she combined in an unbroken 200-run first-wicket stand with her opening partner (84no) to dash to their target of 199 in just 24.5 deliveries.
“I felt I was a not at my best with the gloves, and perhaps a bit as skipper as well tonight, but we’ll accept the win and progress,” she said.
Ironically, the utmost professionalism of the day's run-chase as the pair added 202 runs followed perhaps Australia’s shoddiest display in the field under Healy’s stewardship, with the skipper criticizing herself in particular for dropping two of the half-dozen chances that were missed.
“I was a little bit disappointed with my glovework, and I needed to compensate with the bat, and fortunately succeeded,” she added.
From the time statistics was first recorded on fielding performance metrics in the year 2013, the half-dozen missed opportunities represented the team's poorest 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 analyze,” Healy said.
It helped Bangladesh to eke out 9-198 after they had opted to bat first, their best-ever score in an ODI against the Aussies, with Sobhana Mostary scoring the first half-century ever for the Asian side against the reigning champions.
But Alana King spellbinding continuous ten-over bowling performance, in which she took two wickets for 18 runs with four maidens, was vital to ensuring Australia’s target remained manageable.
Healy Pleased with Victory that Seals Knockout Place
The Australian skipper was delighted to discover that the victory, which places her unbeaten team at the top of the standings on nine points after four victories and a wash-out, secures them a berth in the last-four. “That's great news,” she said.
The 35-year-old captain sped to her hundred off just 73 balls, the quickest century of the World Cup, and finished with 20 boundaries off the 77 deliveries she faced as she pulled away from Litchfield in the latter stages in the innings after they had gone almost boundary-for-boundary towards their fifties.
Litchfield Shines with Maiden Tournament Fifty
The young batter Litchfield hit 12 boundaries and one maximum, reaching to her first World Cup fifty off 46 balls soon after her partner got there off 43. They went on to achieve the third-best stand by any Aussie pair at a Women’s World Cup.
Earlier, during the sluggish fielding display, the captain spilled the easiest of edges off Darcie Brown and also failed to hold on to a difficult lofted one off another bowler. Frustratingly, she also did take a clear chance off Brown but didn’t have it reviewed when the umpire turned down their appeal.
The reinstated Brown sent down the fastest balls at the World Cup so far but was still the Aussies’ most expensive bowling option, conceding 0-52 off her nine overs.
Spin Attack Thrive as Alana King Leads
In contrast, the spinners thrived, spearheaded by King, whose spell could have been even more productive if a fielder hadn’t missed one in the slip cordon.
Other spinners Georgia Wareham (two for 22 off seven) and Gardner (two for 48 off nine) both chipped in, while Annabel Sutherland strengthened her standing as the tournament’s top wicket-taker with her two for 41, taking her total to 13.
A batter's 44 runs and Mostary’s unbeaten 66 off 80 balls took Bangladesh to their highest-ever total against the Australians, but the total was rendered easy meat by a side who had successfully pursued 330 runs against India four days before.
“It's great when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a World Cup,” said player-of-the-match Alana King. “No doubt it doesn’t stop here. We anticipate going back to Indore to face England and South Africa.”
