🔗 Share this article

The Australian skipper has produced superb back-to-back hundreds to guide her team into the last four of the World Cup, inspiring them to a commanding comprehensive win over Bangladesh.

Healy finished unbeaten on 113 runs, arriving just four days after her similarly brilliant 142-run knock that saw off the Indian team at the identical Visakhapatnam venue. This time, she combined in an undefeated double-century first-wicket stand with her opening partner (84 not out) to race to their goal of 199 runs in just 24.5 overs.

“I felt I was a not at my best with the gloves, and perhaps a bit as captain as well tonight, but we’ll accept the win and progress,” she said.

Interestingly, the supreme professionalism of Thursday’s run-chase as the duo added 202 came after possibly Australia’s poorest display in the fielding department under Healy’s stewardship, with the captain scolding herself in especial for spilling a couple of the six chances that went down.

“I was a little bit disappointed with my wicketkeeping, and I needed to compensate with the bat, and luckily delivered,” she added.

Since data was initially taken on fielding performance statistics in 2013, the six dropped catches represented the team's worst fielding showing at a World Cup tournament.

“Maybe it’s just that phase of the competition – we’ve been here a little while, and it’s something we’ll review,” Healy said.

It helped Bangladesh to eke out 9-198 after they had chosen to bat, their best-ever total in an One-Day International against the Aussies, with a key batter scoring the first half-century ever for the Bangladeshi team against the world champions.

But Alana King spellbinding unbroken ten-over bowling performance, in which she claimed 2-18 with four maiden overs, was key to making sure the team's target remained manageable.

The Captain Pleased with Win that Seals Knockout Place

Healy was thrilled to learn that the triumph, which places her undefeated side at the top of the standings on nine points after four victories and a abandoned match, secures them a berth in the last-four. “That’s really cool,” she said.

The experienced skipper sped to her hundred off just 73 deliveries, the quickest century of the World Cup, and finished with 20 fours off the 77 balls she confronted as she pulled away from her partner later in the innings after they had gone practically boundary-for-boundary towards their fifties.

Litchfield Impresses with Maiden World Cup Half-Century

Left-hander Litchfield struck 12 boundaries and one maximum, getting to her maiden World Cup fifty off 46 balls soon after Healy got there off 43 balls. They went on to achieve the third-highest stand by any Aussie duo at a World Cup event.

In the first innings, during the sluggish fielding effort, Healy dropped the simplest of edges off Darcie Brown and also was unable to hold on to a difficult lofted one off Annabel Sutherland. Annoyingly, she also did take a clear chance off Brown but didn’t have it reviewed when the official rejected their shout.

The recalled Darcie Brown bowled the quickest balls at the tournament so far but was still the Aussies’ most expensive bowling option, going for 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.

Spinners Thrive as King Leads

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

Other spinners Wareham (2-22 off seven) and Ash Gardner (two for 48 off nine overs) both contributed, while Sutherland strengthened her position as the competition's leading wicket-taker with her 2-41, taking her tally to thirteen.

Rubya Haider’s 44 and another's not out 66 runs off 80 deliveries took Bangladesh to their record total against the Australians, but the target was made to look straightforward by a side who had chased down 330 runs against the Indian side a few days earlier.

“It's great when you’ve got the ‘Q’ next to your name in a World Cup,” remarked player-of-the-match King. “Certainly it doesn’t stop here. We anticipate going back to the next venue to take on the English team and South Africa.”