The Australian skipper has produced superb back-to-back centuries to steer her team into the last four of the Women's Cricket World Cup, inspiring them to a dominant comprehensive trouncing over their opponents.
The wicketkeeper-batter finished unbeaten on 113, coming just four days after her equally brilliant 142-run knock that saw off the Indian team at the same Visakhapatnam stadium. This time, she combined in an unbroken double-century opening partnership with Phoebe Litchfield (84 not out) to race to their target of 199 in just under 25 deliveries.
“I felt I was a below par with the gloves, and perhaps a little bit as captain as well tonight, but we’ll accept the win and move on,” Healy remarked.
Interestingly, the utmost professionalism of the day's run-chase as the pair put on 202 followed possibly the team's weakest performance in the fielding department under the captain's stewardship, with the captain criticizing herself in particular for dropping a couple 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 fortunately delivered,” Healy continued.
Since statistics was first recorded on fielding statistics in 2013, the half-dozen missed opportunities represented the team's worst fielding display at a Women’s World Cup.
“Maybe it’s just that time of the competition – we’ve been here a while, and it’s something we’ll analyze,” Healy commented.
It helped the opposition to manage 198 for 9 after they had chosen to bat, their best-ever score in an ODI against the Aussies, with Sobhana Mostary compiling the first fifty ever for the Asian side against the world champions.
But Alana King spellbinding unbroken 10-over bowling performance, in which she took 2-18 with four maiden overs, was crucial to making sure the team's chase wasn’t too challenging.
Healy Pleased with Win that Confirms Semi-Final Spot
Healy was pleased to learn that the triumph, which puts her undefeated team top of the group table on nine points after four victories and a wash-out, secures them a place in the last-four. “That's great news,” she exclaimed.
The 35-year-old captain raced to her century off just 73 balls, the fastest hundred of the tournament, and finished with 20 fours off the 77 deliveries she faced as she pulled away from Litchfield later in the innings after they had gone practically boundary-for-boundary towards their fifties.
The Opener Impresses with Maiden World Cup Half-Century
Left-hander Phoebe Litchfield hit 12 boundaries and one maximum, getting to her maiden World Cup fifty off 46 balls shortly after Healy reached hers off 43. They went on to achieve the third-highest partnership by any Australian pair at a Women’s World Cup.
Earlier, during the sluggish fielding effort, Healy dropped the easiest of chances off a teammate and also failed to grasp a tough skied one off another bowler. Annoyingly, she also take a clean chance off the same bowler but failed to review when the umpire turned down their appeal.
The reinstated Brown sent down the quickest balls at the World Cup so far but was still the Aussies’ most expensive bowler, conceding 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spinners Excel as King Stars
Instead, the slow bowlers thrived, spearheaded by Alana King, whose spell could have been more successful if a fielder hadn’t dropped one in the slips.
Fellow spinners Georgia Wareham (two for 22 off seven overs) and Ash Gardner (2-48 off nine overs) both contributed, while Annabel Sutherland strengthened her standing as the tournament’s leading wicket-taker with her two for 41, bringing her tally to thirteen.
A batter's 44 and Mostary’s not out 66 runs off 80 balls took the team to their record total against the Aussies, but the target was made to look easy meat by a side who had chased down 330 against India a few days earlier.
“It's great when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a World Cup,” remarked player-of-the-match King. “Certainly it doesn’t stop here. We look forward to going back to the next venue to face the English team and South Africa.”
