The Australian skipper has delivered brilliant back-to-back centuries to steer her team into the last four of the World Cup, driving them to a merciless 10-wicket victory over their opponents.
Healy remained not out on 113 runs, coming just four days after her similarly brilliant 142 that defeated the Indian team at the identical Visakhapatnam stadium. This time, she combined in an unbroken 200-run first-wicket stand with Phoebe Litchfield (84 not out) to chase to their goal of 199 in just under 25 deliveries.
“I thought I was a below par behind the stumps, and probably a bit as captain as well today, but we’ll take the two points and progress,” Healy remarked.
Interestingly, the supreme professionalism of the day's run-chase as the duo put on 202 runs came after perhaps the team's poorest performance in the field under Healy’s stewardship, with the captain criticizing herself in especial for dropping two of the half-dozen catches that went down.
“I felt somewhat let down with my glovework, and I had a little bit to make up for with the batting, and fortunately delivered,” she added.
Since statistics was first taken on fielding metrics in the year 2013, the six missed opportunities represented the team's worst fielding showing at a Women’s World Cup.
“Perhaps it’s just that phase of the tournament – we’ve been here a while, and it’s something we’ll analyze,” the captain commented.
This allowed Bangladesh to eke out 198 for 9 after they had chosen to bat, their best-ever score in an ODI against the Aussies, with a key batter scoring the maiden fifty ever for the Asian side against the world champions.
But the spinner's spellbinding unbroken 10-over spell, in which she claimed 2-18 with four maiden overs, was key to making sure Australia’s chase wasn’t too challenging.
The Captain Delighted with Win that Confirms Semi-Final Place
Healy was thrilled to discover that the triumph, which places her undefeated side top of the group table on nine points after four wins and a abandoned match, secures them a place in the semi-finals. “That's fantastic,” she said.
The 35-year-old skipper sped to her century off just 73 balls, the quickest century of the tournament, and finished with 20 fours off the 77 balls she faced as she accelerated from Litchfield in the latter stages in the knock after they had gone almost boundary-for-boundary towards their half-centuries.
The Opener Shines with Maiden World Cup Half-Century
Left-hander Litchfield struck 12 boundaries and one maximum, getting 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 partnership by any Australian duo at a World Cup event.
Earlier, during the subpar fielding display, Healy spilled the simplest of chances off a teammate and also failed to hold on to a tough skied one off Annabel Sutherland. Frustratingly, she also did take a clean chance off the same bowler but didn’t have it reviewed when the umpire rejected their appeal.
The recalled Brown bowled the fastest balls at the World Cup so far but was still the Aussies’ most expensive bowler, conceding 0-52 off her nine overs.
Spin Attack Thrive as King Stars
Instead, the slow bowlers thrived, led by Alana King, whose spell could have been more successful if Beth Mooney hadn’t dropped one in the slip cordon.
Other spin bowlers Georgia Wareham (two for 22 off seven overs) and Ash Gardner (2-48 off nine) both chipped in, while Sutherland consolidated her standing as the competition's top wicket-taker with her two for 41, taking her tally to thirteen.
A batter's 44 runs and another's unbeaten 66 runs off 80 balls took the team to their highest-ever total against the Aussies, but the total was rendered easy meat by a team who had successfully pursued 330 against the Indian side four days before.
“It's fantastic when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a World Cup,” said star performer King. “Certainly it won't end here. We anticipate going back to the next venue to face the English team and South Africa.”
