The Australian skipper has executed brilliant consecutive centuries to steer her squad into the last four of the World Cup, motivating them to a dominant 10-wicket victory over their opponents.
The wicketkeeper-batter finished not out on 113 runs, arriving just a few days after her equally impressive 142 that saw off the Indian team at the identical Vizag stadium. This time, she combined in an undefeated double-century opening partnership with her opening partner (84 not out) to chase to their goal of 199 runs in just under 25 overs.
“I thought I was a not at my best behind the stumps, and perhaps a bit as skipper as well today, but we’ll take the two points and move on,” she said.
Interestingly, the supreme professionalism of the day's chase as the duo added 202 came after possibly the team's poorest display in the fielding department under the captain's leadership, with the skipper criticizing herself in especial for dropping a couple of the half-dozen catches that were missed.
“I felt somewhat let down with my glovework, and I needed to compensate with the batting, and luckily succeeded,” she added.
From the time statistics was initially recorded on fielding metrics in 2013, the half-dozen missed catches 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 something we’ll analyze,” Healy commented.
This allowed Bangladesh to manage 198 for 9 after they had opted to bat first, their highest score in an ODI against Australia, with Sobhana Mostary scoring the first fifty ever for the Bangladeshi team against the reigning champions.
But Alana King mesmeric unbroken 10-over spell, in which she claimed 2-18 with four maiden overs, was crucial to ensuring Australia’s target wasn’t too challenging.
Healy Delighted with Victory that Seals Knockout Place
Healy was delighted to discover that the triumph, which places her undefeated team top of the standings on nine points after four victories and a wash-out, guarantees them a berth in the last-four. “That's great news,” she said.
The experienced captain raced to her century off just 73 balls, the fastest century of the tournament, and finished with 20 fours off the 77 deliveries she faced as she accelerated from her partner in the latter stages in the knock after they had gone almost boundary-for-boundary towards their half-centuries.
The Opener Impresses with Maiden World Cup Half-Century
The young batter Phoebe Litchfield hit 12 boundaries and a six, reaching to her maiden tournament half-century off 46 balls soon after Healy got there off 43. They went on to achieve the third-best stand by any Australian pair at a Women’s World Cup.
In the first innings, during the subpar fielding effort, Healy spilled the simplest of chances off a teammate and also was unable to grasp a difficult skied one off Annabel Sutherland. Annoyingly, she also take a clear chance off the same bowler but failed to review when the official turned down their appeal.
The recalled Brown bowled the fastest deliveries at the World Cup so far but was nonetheless the Aussies’ most expensive bowler, going for 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spin Attack Excel as King Stars
Instead, the spinners excelled, spearheaded by Alana King, whose spell could have been even more productive if a fielder hadn’t dropped one in the slips.
Fellow spin bowlers Georgia Wareham (two for 22 off seven) and Gardner (two for 48 off nine) both chipped in, while Sutherland strengthened her position as the competition's leading wicket-taker with her two for 41, taking her tally to 13.
A batter's 44 runs and another's unbeaten 66 runs off 80 balls took the team to their record score against the Aussies, but the target was made to look straightforward by a team who had chased down 330 runs against the Indian side a few days earlier.
“It's great when you’ve got the ‘Q’ next to your name in a World Cup,” remarked star performer Alana King. “Certainly it won't end here. We anticipate going back to the next venue to face England and the Proteas.”
