The Australian skipper has delivered brilliant back-to-back hundreds to guide her squad into the last four of the World Cup, motivating them to a merciless 10-wicket trouncing over Bangladesh.
The wicketkeeper-batter remained not out on 113 runs, arriving just four days after her similarly brilliant 142 that defeated the Indian team at the identical Vizag stadium. This time, she combined in an unbroken 200-run first-wicket stand with her opening partner (84 not out) to dash to their goal of 199 in just under 25 overs.
“I thought I was a little bit poor behind the stumps, and perhaps a little bit as captain as well today, but we’ll accept the two points and move on,” she said.
Interestingly, the utmost professionalism of the day's run-chase as the pair added 202 runs came after perhaps the team's weakest performance in the fielding department under the captain's stewardship, with the skipper criticizing herself in particular for dropping two of the six catches that went down.
“I felt somewhat let down with my wicketkeeping, and I needed to compensate with the bat, and luckily succeeded,” she added.
From the time statistics was initially recorded on fielding metrics in 2013, the six dropped opportunities marked the team's poorest fielding showing at a Women’s World Cup.
“Perhaps it’s just that phase of the competition – we’ve been here a little while, and it’s something we’ll reflect on,” the captain said.
It helped Bangladesh to eke out 198 for 9 after they had opted to bat, their highest total in an ODI against the Aussies, with Sobhana Mostary scoring the first half-century ever for the Bangladeshi team against the reigning champions.
But the spinner's spellbinding unbroken 10-over spell, in which she took 2-18 with four maiden overs, was vital to making sure the team's chase remained manageable.
The Captain Delighted with Victory that Confirms Knockout Spot
The Australian skipper was delighted to discover that the triumph, which puts her unbeaten team at the top of the group table on nine points after four victories and a abandoned match, guarantees them a place in the semi-finals. “That’s really cool,” she said.
The experienced captain sped to her hundred off just 73 balls, the quickest century of the tournament, and ended with 20 fours off the 77 deliveries she confronted as she pulled away from Litchfield in the latter stages in the innings after they had gone almost shot for shot towards their fifties.
Litchfield Shines with First Tournament Fifty
Left-hander Litchfield hit 12 boundaries and a six, reaching to her first tournament fifty off 46 balls soon after Healy got there 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 subpar fielding effort, the captain spilled the easiest of chances off a teammate and also failed 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 umpire rejected their appeal.
The recalled Darcie Brown sent down the quickest deliveries at the World Cup so far but was nonetheless the team's costliest bowling option, conceding 0-52 off her nine overs.
Spinners Thrive as Alana King Stars
In contrast, the spinners excelled, spearheaded by Alana King, whose spell could have been more successful if Beth Mooney hadn’t missed one in the slips.
Fellow spin bowlers Wareham (two for 22 off seven overs) and Gardner (two for 48 off nine) both contributed, while Annabel Sutherland strengthened her standing as the competition's leading wicket-taker with her 2-41, bringing her tally to thirteen.
A batter's 44 and another's unbeaten 66 runs off 80 balls took the team to their highest-ever total against the Aussies, but the total was made to look easy meat by a side who had chased down 330 against India four days before.
“It's fantastic when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a global tournament,” remarked star performer Alana King. “No doubt it won't end here. We look forward to going back to the next venue to take on England and the Proteas.”
