Healy Fires a Second Century to Send the Australian Team into World Cup Final Four
The Australian skipper has delivered outstanding consecutive centuries to guide her team into the semi-finals of the World Cup, inspiring them to a dominant comprehensive trouncing over their opponents.
The wicketkeeper-batter remained not out on 113, arriving just four days after her similarly brilliant 142 that defeated the Indian team at the same Vizag stadium. This time, she shared an undefeated 200-run first-wicket stand with Phoebe Litchfield (84no) to race to their goal of 199 in just under 25 deliveries.
“I thought I was a little bit poor behind the stumps, and probably a little bit as captain as well today, but we’ll accept the two points and move on,” Healy remarked.
Interestingly, the utmost professionalism of the day's chase as the pair added 202 runs came after perhaps the team's weakest display in the field under the captain's leadership, with the captain criticizing herself in especial for dropping two of the half-dozen chances that were missed.
“I felt somewhat let down with my wicketkeeping, and I needed to compensate with the batting, and fortunately succeeded,” Healy continued.
Since statistics was first taken on fielding performance metrics in the year 2013, the six dropped opportunities represented the team's worst fielding showing at a Women’s World Cup.
“Perhaps it’s just that time of the competition – we’ve been here a while, and it’s an issue we’ll reflect on,” the captain commented.
This allowed the opposition to manage 198 for 9 after they had chosen to bat, their best-ever total in an One-Day International against Australia, with a key batter scoring the first fifty ever for the Asian side against the reigning champions.
But Alana King mesmeric continuous ten-over spell, in which she took 2-18 with four maidens, was key to ensuring Australia’s target wasn’t too challenging.
The Captain Delighted with Victory that Seals Semi-Final Place
The Australian skipper was thrilled to learn that the victory, which places her undefeated team at the top of the group table on nine points after four victories and a abandoned match, guarantees them a berth in the semi-finals. “That’s really cool,” she exclaimed.
The experienced skipper raced to her hundred off just 73 balls, the quickest hundred of the tournament, and ended 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 boundary-for-boundary towards their half-centuries.
The Opener Shines with Maiden World Cup Fifty
Left-hander Litchfield hit 12 boundaries and one maximum, getting to her first World Cup half-century off 46 balls soon after Healy got there off 43. They went on to record the third-highest stand by any Australian pair at a Women’s World Cup.
In the first innings, during the subpar fielding display, Healy spilled the simplest of edges off a teammate and also failed to grasp a tough lofted one off Annabel Sutherland. Frustratingly, she also did take a clean chance off Brown but didn’t have it reviewed when the official turned down their appeal.
The recalled Brown sent down the quickest balls at the tournament so far but was still the Aussies’ costliest bowling option, conceding 0-52 off her nine overs.
Spin Attack Excel as Alana King Leads
In contrast, the spinners excelled, spearheaded by Alana King, whose spell could have been even more productive if a fielder hadn’t dropped one in the slip cordon.
Fellow spinners Georgia Wareham (two for 22 off seven overs) and Gardner (2-48 off nine) both contributed, while 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 and another's unbeaten 66 off 80 balls took Bangladesh to their highest-ever total against the Australians, but the total was made to look straightforward by a side who had chased down 330 runs against the Indian side a few days earlier.
“It's fantastic when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a World Cup,” said star performer Alana 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.”