The Australian skipper has delivered brilliant consecutive centuries to steer her team into the last four of the World Cup, inspiring them to a dominant comprehensive win over their opponents.
The wicketkeeper-batter remained unbeaten on 113, coming just four days after her similarly impressive 142 that saw off hosts India at the same Vizag stadium. This time, she combined in an unbroken double-century first-wicket stand with Phoebe Litchfield (84 not out) to dash to their target of 199 in just under 25 deliveries.
“I felt I was a below par with the gloves, and perhaps a bit as captain as well tonight, but we’ll accept the win and move on,” Healy remarked.
Interestingly, the supreme professionalism of Thursday’s run-chase as the duo put on 202 runs followed perhaps the team's shoddiest performance in the field under the captain's stewardship, with the skipper criticizing herself in especial for dropping two of the six catches that went down.
“I felt somewhat let down with my wicketkeeping, and I had a little bit to make up for with the batting, and fortunately got the job done,” she added.
From the time data was first taken on fielding metrics in 2013, the half-dozen missed opportunities marked Australia’s worst fielding showing at a Women’s World Cup.
“Maybe it’s just that phase of the competition – we’ve been here a little while, and it’s an issue we’ll analyze,” the captain said.
This allowed the opposition to eke out 9-198 after they had chosen to bat, their best-ever score in an ODI against Australia, with Sobhana Mostary scoring the first fifty ever for the Asian side against the reigning champions.
But the spinner's spellbinding continuous ten-over bowling performance, in which she took two wickets for 18 runs with four maiden overs, was key to ensuring Australia’s target wasn’t too challenging.
Healy Delighted with Win that Seals Semi-Final Place
Healy was pleased to learn that the triumph, which places her unbeaten team at the top of the group table on nine points after four victories and a wash-out, secures them a berth in the semi-finals. “That’s really cool,” she exclaimed.
The 35-year-old skipper sped to her hundred off just 73 balls, the quickest century of the World Cup, and finished with 20 fours off the 77 deliveries she confronted as she accelerated from her partner in the latter stages in the knock after they had gone practically boundary-for-boundary towards their fifties.
The Opener Impresses with First Tournament Fifty
Left-hander Phoebe Litchfield struck 12 boundaries and one maximum, getting to her first World Cup half-century off 46 balls shortly after her partner reached hers off 43. They went on to achieve the third-highest stand by any Australian duo at a Women’s World Cup.
Earlier, during the sluggish fielding effort, Healy dropped the easiest of edges off Darcie Brown and also was unable to grasp a tough lofted one off Annabel Sutherland. Annoyingly, she also take a clean catch off Brown but didn’t have it reviewed when the official rejected their shout.
The reinstated Brown sent down the quickest deliveries at the World Cup so far but was nonetheless the team's most expensive bowling option, going for 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spinners Excel as King Stars
In contrast, the slow bowlers thrived, spearheaded by Alana King, whose spell could have been even more productive if Beth Mooney hadn’t missed one in the slips.
Fellow spin bowlers Wareham (2-22 off seven) and Gardner (2-48 off nine) both chipped in, while Sutherland consolidated her position as the competition's leading wicket-taker with her two for 41, bringing her tally to thirteen.
A batter's 44 and another's unbeaten 66 runs off 80 deliveries took the team to their highest-ever score against the Aussies, but the total was made to look easy meat by a team who had chased down 330 against the Indian side four 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.”
