Healy Fires a Second Century to Propel the Australian Team into World Cup Knockout Stage
The Australian skipper has produced outstanding back-to-back hundreds to guide her squad into the last four of the Women's Cricket World Cup, inspiring them to a dominant 10-wicket victory over Bangladesh.
The wicketkeeper-batter remained not out on 113 runs, coming just a few days after her similarly brilliant 142-run knock that defeated the Indian team at the identical Vizag stadium. This time, she combined in an unbroken 200-run first-wicket stand with Phoebe Litchfield (84 not out) to race to their target of 199 runs in just 24.5 overs.
“I felt I was a below par with the gloves, and probably a bit as captain as well tonight, but we’ll take the win and move on,” she said.
Interestingly, the utmost expertise of the day's run-chase as the pair put on 202 runs followed possibly Australia’s shoddiest performance in the fielding department under the captain's stewardship, with the skipper criticizing herself in especial for spilling a couple of the half-dozen chances that went down.
“I felt somewhat let down with my glovework, and I needed to compensate with the bat, and luckily got the job done,” Healy continued.
Since statistics was initially recorded on fielding performance metrics in 2013, the half-dozen dropped opportunities represented the team's worst fielding showing at a Women’s World Cup.
“Perhaps it’s just that time of the tournament – we’ve been here a little while, and it’s an issue we’ll review,” the captain said.
It helped Bangladesh to eke out 9-198 after they had chosen to bat first, their highest total in an ODI against Australia, with Sobhana Mostary compiling the maiden fifty ever for the Bangladeshi team against the world champions.
But Alana King mesmeric unbroken 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 remained manageable.
The Captain Delighted with Win that Seals Semi-Final Spot
The Australian skipper was pleased to discover that the triumph, which places her undefeated side top of the standings on nine points after four wins and a abandoned match, guarantees them a place in the last-four. “That’s really cool,” she exclaimed.
The experienced captain sped to her century off just 73 deliveries, the quickest century of the World Cup, and finished with 20 fours off the 77 deliveries she confronted as she accelerated from her partner later in the knock after they had gone practically boundary-for-boundary towards their fifties.
Litchfield Shines with First Tournament Half-Century
The young batter Phoebe Litchfield hit 12 fours 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 partnership by any Australian pair at a World Cup event.
In the first innings, during the subpar fielding display, the captain dropped the simplest of chances off Darcie Brown and also was unable to hold on to a tough lofted one off Annabel Sutherland. Annoyingly, she also take a clear chance off Brown but didn’t have it reviewed when the umpire turned down their appeal.
The recalled Brown sent down the quickest deliveries at the tournament so far but was nonetheless the Aussies’ most expensive bowler, conceding 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spin Attack Excel as King Stars
Instead, the slow bowlers excelled, led by King, whose performance could have been more successful if a fielder hadn’t dropped one in the slips.
Other spin bowlers Georgia Wareham (2-22 off seven overs) and Gardner (two for 48 off nine overs) both chipped in, while Annabel Sutherland strengthened her standing as the competition's leading wicket-taker with her two for 41, bringing her total to thirteen.
Rubya Haider’s 44 runs and Mostary’s not out 66 off 80 balls took the team to their record total against the Australians, but the total was rendered easy meat by a side who had chased down 330 runs against the Indian side a few days earlier.
“It’s always nice when you’ve got the ‘Q’ next to your name in a World Cup,” said player-of-the-match King. “Certainly it doesn’t stop here. We look forward to returning to the next venue to face the English team and the Proteas.”