Healy Fires a Second Ton to Send Australia into Cricket World Cup Final Four

The Australian skipper has executed superb back-to-back hundreds to lead her team into the semi-finals of the World Cup, motivating them to a dominant 10-wicket win over Bangladesh.

The wicketkeeper-batter finished not out on 113 runs, coming just four days after her similarly brilliant 142-run knock that defeated hosts India at the same Visakhapatnam venue. This time, she combined in an unbroken 200-run opening partnership with Phoebe Litchfield (84 not out) to chase to their target of 199 runs in just under 25 deliveries.

“I thought I was a little bit poor with the gloves, and probably a little bit as skipper as well today, but we’ll take the two points and progress,” Healy remarked.

Interestingly, the supreme expertise of the day's chase as the duo added 202 runs came after possibly the team's weakest display in the field under the captain's leadership, with the captain criticizing herself in especial for spilling a couple of the half-dozen chances that went down.

“I felt somewhat let down with my wicketkeeping, and I needed to compensate with the bat, and fortunately succeeded,” she added.

Since data was initially taken on fielding performance metrics in 2013, the half-dozen dropped opportunities represented the team's poorest fielding showing at a Women’s World Cup.

“Maybe it’s just that time of the competition – we’ve been here a while, and it’s an issue we’ll review,” the captain commented.

This allowed Bangladesh to eke out 198 for 9 after they had chosen to bat, their best-ever total in an One-Day International against Australia, with a key batter compiling the maiden half-century ever for the Bangladeshi team against the world champions.

But the spinner's spellbinding unbroken 10-over bowling performance, in which she took two wickets for 18 runs with four maiden overs, was crucial to making sure Australia’s chase wasn’t too challenging.

Healy Delighted with Victory that Seals Semi-Final Spot

Healy was pleased to discover that the victory, which puts her unbeaten side at the 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 great news,” she said.

The 35-year-old captain sped to her hundred off just 73 balls, the fastest hundred of the World Cup, and ended with 20 boundaries off the 77 balls she faced 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 Maiden Tournament Fifty

The young batter Phoebe Litchfield hit 12 boundaries and one maximum, reaching to her maiden tournament half-century off 46 balls soon after her partner reached hers off 43. They went on to achieve the third-best partnership by any Australian pair at a World Cup event.

Earlier, during the sluggish fielding display, the captain dropped the easiest of edges off a teammate and also was unable to grasp a difficult lofted one off another bowler. Frustratingly, she also did take a clean chance off Brown but didn’t have it reviewed when the official turned down their appeal.

The recalled Darcie Brown sent down the quickest deliveries at the World Cup so far but was nonetheless the Aussies’ most expensive bowler, going for 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.

Spinners Excel as Alana King Stars

Instead, the spinners thrived, spearheaded by King, whose spell could have been more successful if Beth Mooney hadn’t missed one in the slips.

Fellow spinners Georgia Wareham (two for 22 off seven overs) and Gardner (two for 48 off nine) both chipped in, while Annabel Sutherland consolidated her position as the tournament’s leading wicket-taker with her 2-41, bringing her total to thirteen.

Rubya Haider’s 44 and Mostary’s unbeaten 66 runs off 80 deliveries took Bangladesh to their highest-ever total against the Australians, but the target was rendered easy meat by a team who had successfully pursued 330 against the Indian side a few days earlier.

“It’s always nice when you’ve got the ‘Q’ next to your name in a World Cup,” said star performer King. “Certainly it doesn’t stop here. We look forward to returning to the next venue to face the English team and South Africa.”

Christopher Poole
Christopher Poole

Lieke is een ervaren life coach met een passie voor mindfulness en persoonlijke ontwikkeling.