The Australian skipper has executed brilliant back-to-back hundreds to lead her squad into the semi-finals of the Women's Cricket World Cup, driving them to a merciless 10-wicket trouncing over their opponents.
Healy remained unbeaten on 113 runs, arriving just four days after her equally impressive 142-run knock that saw off hosts India at the identical Visakhapatnam stadium. This time, she shared an unbroken 200-run first-wicket stand with her opening partner (84 not out) to chase to their goal of 199 in just 24.5 deliveries.
“I thought I was a little bit poor with the gloves, and probably a bit as skipper as well today, but we’ll accept the two points and move on,” she said.
Interestingly, the supreme expertise of the day's run-chase as the duo put on 202 runs followed perhaps Australia’s poorest performance in the field under the captain's stewardship, with the captain scolding herself in especial for spilling a couple of the half-dozen catches that were missed.
“I was a little bit disappointed with my wicketkeeping, and I needed to compensate with the batting, and luckily succeeded,” she added.
From the time statistics was first taken on fielding performance metrics in the year 2013, the half-dozen dropped catches marked Australia’s worst fielding display at a Women’s World Cup.
“Perhaps it’s just that time of the competition – we’ve been here a while, and it’s something we’ll review,” Healy commented.
This allowed the opposition to manage 9-198 after they had chosen to bat, their highest score in an ODI against the Aussies, with Sobhana Mostary scoring the maiden half-century ever for the Asian side against the world champions.
But the spinner's mesmeric unbroken 10-over spell, in which she took 2-18 with four maiden overs, was vital to ensuring Australia’s chase wasn’t too challenging.
The Captain Pleased with Win that Confirms Knockout Place
The Australian skipper was delighted to learn that the victory, which places her unbeaten team top of the group table on nine points after four wins and a abandoned match, secures them a berth in the last-four. “That’s really cool,” she exclaimed.
The 35-year-old captain sped to her hundred off just 73 deliveries, the quickest century of the World Cup, and finished with 20 fours off the 77 deliveries she confronted as she accelerated from her partner later in the innings after they had gone almost shot for shot towards their fifties.
The Opener Shines with Maiden World Cup Half-Century
Left-hander Litchfield hit 12 fours and one maximum, reaching to her maiden World Cup fifty off 46 balls soon after her partner got there off 43 balls. They went on to record the third-highest partnership by any Aussie duo at a Women’s World Cup.
In the first innings, during the subpar fielding display, Healy dropped the easiest of edges off a teammate and also failed to hold on to a difficult lofted one off another bowler. Annoyingly, she also take a clear catch off Brown but didn’t have it reviewed when the umpire turned down their shout.
The recalled Darcie Brown sent down the fastest balls at the World Cup so far but was still the Aussies’ costliest bowling option, conceding 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spin Attack Thrive as Alana King Leads
In contrast, the spinners excelled, spearheaded by Alana King, whose spell could have been even more productive if Beth Mooney hadn’t missed one in the slip cordon.
Fellow spin bowlers Wareham (2-22 off seven overs) and Ash Gardner (two for 48 off nine overs) both contributed, while Sutherland consolidated her position as the competition's top wicket-taker with her two for 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 made to look easy meat by a team who had chased down 330 against India four days earlier.
“It's great when you’ve got the ‘Q’ next to your name in a global tournament,” said player-of-the-match King. “Certainly it doesn’t stop here. We anticipate returning to the next venue to face England and South Africa.”
