The Australian skipper has produced outstanding back-to-back centuries to guide her team into the semi-finals of the World Cup, motivating them to a merciless 10-wicket win over Bangladesh.
The wicketkeeper-batter remained unbeaten on 113, coming just four days after her similarly stellar 142-run knock that saw off the Indian team at the same Visakhapatnam stadium. This time, she combined in an unbroken 200-run opening partnership 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 skipper as well today, but we’ll take the two points and progress,” she said.
Interestingly, the utmost expertise of the day's run-chase as the duo added 202 runs followed perhaps Australia’s shoddiest performance in the field under the captain's leadership, with the skipper scolding herself in especial for dropping two of the six catches that were missed.
“I felt somewhat let down with my wicketkeeping, and I had a little bit to make up for with the bat, and luckily succeeded,” she added.
Since data was initially recorded on fielding performance statistics in 2013, the six missed catches marked Australia’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 an issue we’ll review,” the captain commented.
This allowed Bangladesh to eke out 9-198 after they had opted to bat, their best-ever score in an One-Day International against the Aussies, with a key batter compiling the first fifty ever for the Asian side against the world champions.
But Alana King mesmeric continuous ten-over bowling performance, in which she claimed two wickets for 18 runs with four maiden overs, was crucial to ensuring Australia’s target remained manageable.
The Captain Delighted with Win that Confirms Semi-Final Spot
The Australian skipper was delighted to learn that the victory, which places her undefeated side at the 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 experienced captain sped to her hundred off just 73 deliveries, the quickest century of the tournament, and ended 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 shot for shot towards their fifties.
The Opener Impresses with First World Cup Half-Century
The young batter Litchfield hit 12 boundaries and a six, reaching to her first tournament fifty off 46 balls soon after Healy got there off 43 balls. They went on to achieve the third-highest partnership by any Aussie pair at a World Cup event.
In the first innings, during the subpar fielding effort, Healy spilled the simplest of chances off Darcie Brown and also was unable to hold on to a tough lofted one off another bowler. Frustratingly, she also did take a clean catch off the same bowler but didn’t have it reviewed when the official turned down their appeal.
The reinstated Darcie Brown bowled the quickest deliveries at the World Cup so far but was nonetheless the Aussies’ most expensive bowling option, going for 0-52 off her nine overs.
Spin Attack Excel as King Leads
Instead, the slow bowlers thrived, spearheaded by King, whose spell could have been more successful if Beth Mooney hadn’t missed one in the slip cordon.
Fellow spinners Georgia Wareham (2-22 off seven) and Gardner (2-48 off nine overs) both chipped in, while Sutherland consolidated her standing as the tournament’s leading wicket-taker with her two for 41, bringing her total to 13.
A batter's 44 and another's not out 66 off 80 deliveries took the team to their record score against the Australians, but the total was rendered easy meat by a team who had chased down 330 runs against the Indian side four days earlier.
“It’s always nice when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a global tournament,” said star performer Alana King. “No doubt it won't end here. We anticipate returning to Indore to face England and the Proteas.”
