The Australian skipper has executed brilliant back-to-back centuries to steer her squad into the last four of the Women's Cricket World Cup, driving them to a commanding 10-wicket trouncing over Bangladesh.
The wicketkeeper-batter remained not out on 113 runs, coming just a few days after her equally impressive 142-run knock that saw off the Indian team at the identical Vizag venue. This time, she combined in an undefeated 200-run opening partnership with her opening partner (84 not out) to race to their goal of 199 runs in just 24.5 overs.
“I felt I was a little bit poor behind the stumps, and perhaps a little bit as skipper as well tonight, but we’ll take the two points and progress,” she said.
Ironically, the utmost expertise of Thursday’s chase as the pair put on 202 runs came after perhaps the team's weakest display in the fielding department under Healy’s leadership, with the captain criticizing herself in particular for spilling a couple of the half-dozen chances that were missed.
“I felt somewhat let down with my wicketkeeping, and I needed to compensate with the batting, and fortunately delivered,” Healy continued.
From the time statistics was first recorded on fielding statistics in the year 2013, the six dropped opportunities marked the team's poorest fielding display at a World Cup tournament.
“Maybe it’s just that phase of the competition – we’ve been here a while, and it’s an issue we’ll analyze,” Healy said.
It helped Bangladesh to eke out 198 for 9 after they had chosen to bat, their best-ever score in an ODI against Australia, with Sobhana Mostary scoring the maiden fifty ever for the Bangladeshi team against the reigning champions.
But Alana King spellbinding unbroken ten-over spell, in which she claimed 2-18 with four maiden overs, was vital to making sure Australia’s chase wasn’t too challenging.
The Captain Delighted with Victory that Confirms Semi-Final Spot
The Australian skipper was thrilled to discover that the victory, which puts her unbeaten team top of the standings on nine points after four wins and a abandoned match, secures them a berth in the semi-finals. “That's fantastic,” she said.
The experienced captain raced to her century off just 73 balls, the fastest century of the World Cup, and ended 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 practically boundary-for-boundary towards their fifties.
Litchfield Shines with First Tournament Fifty
Left-hander Litchfield hit 12 boundaries and one maximum, getting to her maiden World Cup fifty off 46 deliveries shortly after her partner reached hers off 43 balls. They went on to achieve the third-best partnership by any Aussie pair at a Women’s World Cup.
Earlier, during the sluggish fielding effort, the captain dropped the simplest of chances off Darcie Brown and also was unable to grasp a difficult lofted one off Annabel Sutherland. Annoyingly, she also did take a clean chance off the same bowler but failed to review when the official rejected their appeal.
The reinstated Darcie Brown bowled the quickest balls at the World Cup so far but was still the team's costliest bowler, conceding 0-52 off her nine overs.
Spin Attack Excel as King Leads
Instead, the slow bowlers thrived, spearheaded by King, whose performance could have been even more productive if a fielder hadn’t missed one in the slip cordon.
Other spinners Wareham (two for 22 off seven overs) and Ash Gardner (2-48 off nine) both chipped in, while Sutherland consolidated her position as the tournament’s leading wicket-taker with her two for 41, taking her total to 13.
A batter's 44 runs and another's not out 66 off 80 deliveries took the team to their highest-ever score against the Australians, but the target was made to look straightforward by a side who had successfully pursued 330 against the Indian side a few days earlier.
“It's fantastic 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 anticipate returning to the next venue to take on the English team and South Africa.”
