The Australian skipper has executed brilliant back-to-back centuries to lead her team into the last four of the Women's Cricket World Cup, driving them to a merciless 10-wicket win over their opponents.
Healy finished not out on 113, coming just a few days after her similarly brilliant 142-run knock that saw off the Indian team at the same Visakhapatnam stadium. This time, she combined in an unbroken 200-run first-wicket stand with Phoebe Litchfield (84 not out) to dash to their target of 199 in just under 25 overs.
“I felt I was a below par with the gloves, and probably a bit as captain as well today, but we’ll take the win and move on,” Healy remarked.
Ironically, the supreme professionalism of Thursday’s chase as the pair put on 202 followed perhaps Australia’s poorest display in the fielding department under the captain's leadership, with the captain criticizing herself in especial for dropping a couple of the half-dozen chances that went down.
“I was a little bit disappointed with my glovework, and I needed to compensate with the batting, and luckily delivered,” Healy continued.
Since data was first taken on fielding metrics in 2013, the half-dozen missed opportunities marked the team's worst fielding display at a World Cup tournament.
“Maybe it’s just that time of the tournament – we’ve been here a while, and it’s something we’ll analyze,” Healy commented.
This allowed the opposition 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 half-century 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 maidens, was vital to ensuring the team's chase wasn’t too challenging.
The Captain Delighted with Win that Confirms Knockout Spot
The Australian skipper was delighted to learn that the triumph, which puts her unbeaten team at the top of the standings 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 sped to her century off just 73 deliveries, the quickest century of the World Cup, and finished 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 almost boundary-for-boundary towards their fifties.
Litchfield Impresses with First Tournament Half-Century
The young batter Litchfield struck 12 fours and one maximum, getting to her maiden World Cup fifty off 46 balls shortly after her partner got there off 43. They went on to record the third-highest stand by any Australian pair at a Women’s World Cup.
Earlier, during the subpar fielding effort, Healy dropped the simplest of chances off a teammate and also failed to hold on to a tough skied one off another bowler. Frustratingly, she also did take a clear chance off the same bowler but failed to review when the umpire rejected their appeal.
The reinstated Darcie Brown bowled the fastest balls at the tournament so far but was nonetheless the team's most expensive bowler, conceding 0-52 off her nine overs.
Spin Attack Excel as King Stars
Instead, the slow bowlers excelled, spearheaded by Alana King, whose spell could have been more successful if a fielder hadn’t dropped one in the slip cordon.
Fellow spinners Georgia Wareham (two for 22 off seven) and Gardner (2-48 off nine overs) both chipped in, while Annabel Sutherland strengthened her position as the tournament’s leading wicket-taker with her 2-41, bringing her tally to thirteen.
Rubya Haider’s 44 runs and Mostary’s unbeaten 66 off 80 balls took the team to their highest-ever total against the Aussies, but the target was made to look easy meat by a side who had successfully pursued 330 runs against India a few days before.
“It’s always nice when you’ve got the ‘Q’ next to your name in a global tournament,” said star performer Alana King. “Certainly it doesn’t stop here. We anticipate returning to the next venue to face England and South Africa.”
