The Australian skipper has executed outstanding back-to-back hundreds to steer her team into the semi-finals of the World Cup, motivating them to a merciless comprehensive win over Bangladesh.
The wicketkeeper-batter remained not out on 113 runs, coming just four days after her equally brilliant 142 that saw off the Indian team at the identical Vizag venue. This time, she combined in an undefeated 200-run opening partnership with her opening partner (84 not out) to race to their target of 199 runs in just under 25 overs.
“I felt I was a little bit poor behind the stumps, and perhaps a little bit as skipper as well today, but we’ll accept the win and move on,” Healy remarked.
Ironically, the supreme expertise of Thursday’s run-chase as the pair added 202 came after possibly the team's poorest performance in the field under Healy’s leadership, with the skipper scolding herself in particular for spilling two of the six chances that went down.
“I felt somewhat let down with my glovework, and I had a little bit to make up for with the bat, and luckily delivered,” Healy continued.
From the time statistics was first recorded on fielding performance metrics in 2013, the half-dozen missed catches represented Australia’s worst fielding showing at a Women’s World Cup.
“Perhaps it’s just that phase of the competition – we’ve been here a while, and it’s an issue we’ll review,” the captain commented.
It helped the opposition to manage 198 for 9 after they had opted to bat, their best-ever total in an ODI against the Aussies, with Sobhana Mostary scoring the first fifty ever for the Bangladeshi team against the world champions.
But the spinner's spellbinding continuous ten-over bowling performance, in which she claimed two wickets for 18 runs with four maidens, was crucial to making sure the team's target wasn’t too challenging.
Healy Delighted with Win that Confirms Semi-Final Spot
Healy was pleased to learn that the victory, which puts her unbeaten team top of the group table on nine points after four wins and a abandoned match, guarantees them a berth in the semi-finals. “That's great news,” she said.
The 35-year-old captain raced to her hundred off just 73 deliveries, the quickest century of the tournament, and ended with 20 boundaries off the 77 deliveries she faced as she pulled away from her partner later in the innings after they had gone almost shot for shot towards their half-centuries.
The Opener Shines with First World Cup Half-Century
Left-hander Litchfield hit 12 boundaries and one maximum, reaching to her first tournament fifty off 46 deliveries shortly after her partner reached hers off 43 balls. They went on to achieve the third-highest stand by any Australian duo at a World Cup event.
In the first innings, during the sluggish fielding display, the captain dropped the easiest of chances off a teammate and also was unable to hold on to a tough lofted one off Annabel Sutherland. Frustratingly, she also did take a clean catch off the same bowler but failed to review when the umpire turned down their appeal.
The reinstated Brown sent down the fastest balls at the tournament so far but was nonetheless the team's most expensive bowler, going for 0-52 off her nine overs.
Spinners Excel as King Stars
Instead, the spinners excelled, led by Alana King, whose performance could have been even more productive if a fielder hadn’t dropped one in the slips.
Other spin bowlers Georgia Wareham (2-22 off seven overs) and Ash Gardner (2-48 off nine overs) both contributed, while Sutherland strengthened her position as the competition's leading wicket-taker with her 2-41, bringing her total to 13.
A batter's 44 and another's unbeaten 66 off 80 balls took Bangladesh to their highest-ever score against the Australians, but the total was rendered straightforward by a side who had chased down 330 against the Indian side four days earlier.
“It's great when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a global tournament,” remarked player-of-the-match King. “Certainly it won't end here. We anticipate returning to the next venue to face England and South Africa.”
