The Australian skipper has delivered outstanding back-to-back centuries to guide her squad into the semi-finals of the Women's Cricket World Cup, motivating them to a commanding 10-wicket win over their opponents.
Healy finished not out on 113 runs, coming just four days after her similarly stellar 142-run knock that saw off hosts India at the identical Visakhapatnam stadium. This time, she combined in an unbroken double-century opening partnership with Phoebe Litchfield (84no) to dash to their goal of 199 in just under 25 overs.
“I felt I was a not at my best with the gloves, and probably a bit as skipper as well today, but we’ll take the win and move on,” she said.
Ironically, the utmost expertise of Thursday’s chase as the duo added 202 runs followed possibly Australia’s poorest performance in the field under Healy’s stewardship, with the skipper criticizing herself in particular for spilling a couple of the half-dozen catches that went down.
“I was a little bit disappointed with my wicketkeeping, and I had a little bit to make up for with the bat, and luckily delivered,” Healy continued.
From the time data was initially taken on fielding metrics in 2013, the half-dozen dropped opportunities represented Australia’s poorest fielding display at a World Cup tournament.
“Perhaps it’s just that phase of the tournament – we’ve been here a little while, and it’s an issue we’ll reflect on,” Healy commented.
It helped the opposition to manage 198 for 9 after they had chosen to bat first, their best-ever score in an ODI against Australia, with a key batter compiling the first half-century ever for the Asian side against the world champions.
But Alana King spellbinding unbroken ten-over bowling performance, in which she took two wickets for 18 runs with four maidens, was key to making sure Australia’s chase remained manageable.
The Captain Delighted with Victory that Confirms Knockout Place
Healy was thrilled to learn that the triumph, which puts her undefeated team top of the standings on nine points after four victories and a wash-out, secures them a berth in the semi-finals. “That's fantastic,” she exclaimed.
The 35-year-old skipper sped to her century off just 73 deliveries, the fastest century of the World Cup, and finished with 20 boundaries off the 77 balls she faced as she accelerated from her partner in the latter stages in the innings after they had gone almost boundary-for-boundary towards their half-centuries.
Litchfield Impresses with First World Cup Half-Century
The young batter Phoebe Litchfield struck 12 fours and one maximum, reaching to her first World Cup fifty off 46 balls shortly after her partner got there off 43 balls. They went on to record the third-highest partnership by any Australian pair at a World Cup event.
In the first innings, during the subpar fielding effort, the captain spilled the simplest of edges off Darcie Brown and also was unable to grasp a difficult skied one off another bowler. Annoyingly, she also take a clean catch off the same bowler but didn’t have it reviewed when the umpire turned down their appeal.
The reinstated Brown sent down the fastest balls at the tournament so far but was nonetheless the Aussies’ costliest bowler, going for 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 even more productive if a fielder hadn’t dropped one in the slip cordon.
Fellow spin bowlers Georgia Wareham (2-22 off seven overs) and Gardner (two for 48 off nine overs) both chipped in, while Sutherland consolidated her standing as the tournament’s top wicket-taker with her 2-41, taking her tally to 13.
Rubya Haider’s 44 runs and another's unbeaten 66 runs off 80 deliveries took the team to their highest-ever score against the Australians, but the total was rendered straightforward by a side who had successfully pursued 330 against India four 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 Alana King. “Certainly it won't end here. We look forward to returning to Indore to face England and the Proteas.”
