The Australian skipper has delivered brilliant back-to-back hundreds to guide her team into the semi-finals of the Women's Cricket World Cup, inspiring them to a dominant 10-wicket trouncing over their opponents.
The wicketkeeper-batter remained unbeaten on 113 runs, arriving just four days after her similarly impressive 142 that saw off hosts India at the same Vizag stadium. This time, she combined in an undefeated double-century opening partnership with her opening partner (84no) to chase to their target of 199 in just 24.5 overs.
“I thought I was a below par behind the stumps, and probably a bit as skipper as well tonight, but we’ll take the two points and move on,” Healy remarked.
Ironically, the utmost professionalism of Thursday’s chase as the pair put on 202 followed perhaps Australia’s weakest display in the fielding department under the captain's leadership, with the skipper scolding herself in particular for dropping a couple of the six chances that were missed.
“I felt somewhat let down with my glovework, and I had a little bit to make up for with the bat, and fortunately succeeded,” she added.
Since data was initially taken on fielding performance metrics in the year 2013, the half-dozen missed catches marked the team's poorest 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 manage 198 for 9 after they had opted to bat first, their best-ever total in an One-Day International against the Aussies, with a key batter scoring the first half-century ever for the Asian side against the reigning champions.
But Alana King mesmeric unbroken ten-over bowling performance, in which she took 2-18 with four maidens, was crucial to making sure the team's chase remained manageable.
The Captain Delighted with Victory that Seals Knockout Place
Healy was pleased to discover that the victory, which places her unbeaten side at the top of the standings on nine points after four wins and a wash-out, secures them a place in the last-four. “That’s really cool,” she exclaimed.
The 35-year-old skipper raced to her century off just 73 balls, the quickest century of the tournament, and finished with 20 fours off the 77 deliveries she confronted as she pulled away from her partner in the latter stages in the knock after they had gone almost boundary-for-boundary towards their half-centuries.
Litchfield Shines with First Tournament Fifty
Left-hander Litchfield hit 12 fours and one maximum, getting to her first tournament half-century off 46 deliveries shortly after Healy got there off 43 balls. They went on to record the third-best stand by any Australian pair at a Women’s World Cup.
Earlier, during the sluggish fielding display, the captain dropped the easiest of edges off a teammate and also was unable to grasp a tough skied one off another bowler. Annoyingly, she also did take a clear chance off Brown but didn’t have it reviewed when the umpire turned down their appeal.
The reinstated Brown sent down the quickest deliveries at the tournament so far but was nonetheless the team's costliest bowling option, going for 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spinners Thrive as King Leads
Instead, the spinners excelled, spearheaded by Alana King, whose spell could have been more successful if a fielder hadn’t missed one in the slips.
Fellow spinners Wareham (two for 22 off seven) and Ash Gardner (2-48 off nine overs) both contributed, while Annabel Sutherland consolidated her standing as the competition's top wicket-taker with her 2-41, bringing her total to 13.
Rubya Haider’s 44 runs and another's not out 66 runs off 80 deliveries took the team to their highest-ever score against the Australians, but the total was rendered easy meat by a team who had chased down 330 runs against India four days earlier.
“It's fantastic when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a global tournament,” remarked player-of-the-match Alana King. “Certainly it doesn’t stop here. We look forward to returning to Indore to take on the English team and South Africa.”
