The Australian skipper has delivered superb back-to-back centuries to steer her squad into the semi-finals of the Women's Cricket World Cup, motivating them to a merciless comprehensive victory over their opponents.
The wicketkeeper-batter remained unbeaten on 113 runs, coming just four days after her equally impressive 142 that defeated hosts India at the same Visakhapatnam stadium. This time, she shared an unbroken 200-run first-wicket stand with Phoebe Litchfield (84 not out) to chase to their target of 199 runs in just 24.5 overs.
“I felt I was a not at my best with the gloves, and perhaps a little bit as skipper as well tonight, but we’ll accept the win and move on,” she said.
Ironically, the utmost expertise of the day's chase as the duo put on 202 runs followed possibly the team's weakest display in the fielding department under Healy’s stewardship, with the captain scolding herself in particular for spilling two of the six chances that were missed.
“I felt somewhat let down with my wicketkeeping, and I needed to compensate with the bat, and fortunately succeeded,” Healy continued.
From the time statistics was first taken on fielding metrics in the year 2013, the six missed catches represented the team's poorest fielding showing at a World Cup tournament.
“Maybe it’s just that time of the tournament – we’ve been here a little while, and it’s an issue we’ll reflect on,” Healy said.
This allowed the opposition to manage 9-198 after they had opted to bat first, their best-ever score in an One-Day International against Australia, with a key batter scoring the first half-century ever for the Asian side against the world champions.
But Alana King spellbinding unbroken ten-over bowling performance, in which she claimed two wickets for 18 runs with four maiden overs, was crucial to making sure the team's chase remained manageable.
The Captain Pleased with Victory that Seals Knockout Place
Healy was pleased to learn that the triumph, which puts her undefeated team at the top of the standings on nine points after four wins and a wash-out, guarantees them a berth in the semi-finals. “That’s really cool,” she said.
The 35-year-old captain raced to her century off just 73 deliveries, the fastest hundred of the tournament, and finished with 20 boundaries off the 77 deliveries she confronted as she pulled away from her partner later in the knock after they had gone practically boundary-for-boundary towards their fifties.
Litchfield Impresses with First World Cup Fifty
Left-hander Phoebe Litchfield hit 12 boundaries and one maximum, getting to her first tournament half-century off 46 balls soon after her partner reached hers off 43 balls. They went on to record the third-best partnership by any Aussie pair at a World Cup event.
In the first innings, during the sluggish fielding effort, the captain dropped the simplest of edges off Darcie Brown and also was unable to hold on to a difficult lofted one off another bowler. Frustratingly, she also take a clean chance off Brown but failed to review when the umpire turned down their shout.
The recalled Darcie Brown bowled the quickest deliveries at the World Cup so far but was still the team's costliest bowler, conceding 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spinners Thrive as Alana King Leads
In contrast, the spinners excelled, led by King, whose performance could have been more successful if Beth Mooney hadn’t dropped one in the slips.
Other spinners Wareham (2-22 off seven overs) and Ash Gardner (two for 48 off nine overs) both chipped in, while Sutherland strengthened her standing as the tournament’s leading wicket-taker with her 2-41, taking her total to thirteen.
A batter's 44 runs and Mostary’s not out 66 runs off 80 balls took the team to their record total against the Aussies, but the total was rendered straightforward by a side who had successfully pursued 330 against India four days before.
“It's great when you’ve got the ‘Q’ next to your name in a global tournament,” said star performer Alana King. “Certainly it doesn’t stop here. We look forward to returning to Indore to face England and the Proteas.”
