Healy Blasts Another Ton to Send Australia into World Cup Final Four
The Australian skipper has delivered outstanding back-to-back hundreds to steer her squad into the last four of the Women's Cricket World Cup, inspiring them to a dominant comprehensive victory over their opponents.
The wicketkeeper-batter finished not out on 113, coming just four days after her equally impressive 142-run knock that defeated the Indian team at the identical Vizag venue. This time, she shared an unbroken double-century opening partnership with her opening partner (84 not out) to race to their target of 199 runs in just 24.5 deliveries.
“I thought I was a below par with the gloves, and perhaps a little bit as captain as well today, but we’ll take the two points and move on,” she said.
Ironically, the utmost professionalism of Thursday’s chase as the pair put on 202 came after perhaps the team's shoddiest display in the fielding department under the captain's leadership, with the skipper scolding herself in especial for spilling a couple of the six chances that were missed.
“I was a little bit disappointed with my glovework, and I needed to compensate with the bat, and luckily succeeded,” Healy continued.
From the time data was initially taken on fielding statistics in 2013, the half-dozen missed catches marked Australia’s poorest fielding display at a Women’s World Cup.
“Perhaps it’s just that phase of the tournament – we’ve been here a little while, and it’s an issue we’ll review,” Healy commented.
It helped Bangladesh to manage 198 for 9 after they had chosen to bat first, their highest score in an One-Day International against Australia, with Sobhana Mostary compiling the first fifty ever for the Asian side against the world champions.
But the spinner's mesmeric continuous ten-over bowling performance, in which she took two wickets for 18 runs with four maiden overs, was vital to making sure the team's target remained manageable.
The Captain Pleased with Victory that Seals Semi-Final Spot
Healy was pleased to discover that the triumph, which puts her undefeated side top of the standings on nine points after four wins and a wash-out, secures them a berth in the last-four. “That's great news,” she said.
The 35-year-old skipper raced to her century off just 73 balls, the quickest hundred of the World Cup, and ended with 20 boundaries off the 77 deliveries she faced as she pulled away from her partner in the latter stages in the innings after they had gone almost shot for shot towards their fifties.
The Opener Shines with First World Cup Fifty
The young batter Litchfield struck 12 boundaries and one maximum, reaching to her first tournament fifty off 46 balls soon after Healy got there off 43. They went on to achieve the third-highest partnership by any Australian duo at a World Cup event.
In the first innings, during the subpar fielding display, Healy dropped the easiest of edges off Darcie Brown and also failed to hold on to a difficult lofted one off Annabel Sutherland. Frustratingly, she also take a clean catch off Brown but failed to review when the umpire rejected their shout.
The recalled Darcie Brown bowled the fastest deliveries at the tournament so far but was still the team's costliest bowler, conceding 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spinners Thrive as Alana King Leads
In contrast, the slow bowlers thrived, led by King, whose performance could have been more successful if Beth Mooney hadn’t dropped one in the slips.
Fellow spin bowlers Georgia Wareham (2-22 off seven) and Gardner (2-48 off nine overs) both contributed, while Sutherland consolidated her position as the competition's top wicket-taker with her 2-41, bringing her total to 13.
A batter's 44 runs and another's unbeaten 66 off 80 balls took the team to their highest-ever total against the Australians, but the total was rendered easy meat by a side who had successfully pursued 330 against the Indian side four days earlier.
“It's great when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a global tournament,” said player-of-the-match King. “No doubt it won't end here. We look forward to going back to the next venue to face England and the Proteas.”