Healy bids farewell to ODI cricket with a century, Australia clean sweeps the series by defeating India

Hobart: Captain Alyssa Healy bid farewell to ODI cricket in style after playing an innings of 158 runs as Australia defeated world champions India by 185 runs to clean sweep the series 3-0 in the third and final women’s ODI cricket match here on Sunday. This was the last ODI match of 35-year-old Healy, whose 158 runs and Beth Mooney’s unbeaten 106 runs helped Australia score 409 runs for seven wickets after being invited to bat.

Chasing this big target of 410 runs, the Indian team was all out for 224 runs in 45.1 overs and lost the three-match series 0-3. Healy will bid farewell to his illustrious international career after playing the one-off pink-ball Test against India in Perth from March 6. Healy has scored 3777 runs in 126 ODI matches which include eight centuries and 19 half-centuries. Australia lost the wicket of Phoebe Litchfield (14) early but Healy and Georgia Woll (62 runs off 52 balls) held on to the innings with a 134-run partnership for the second wicket.

Healy and Mooney also played an important role in taking Australia to a huge score by making a partnership of 145 runs for the third wicket. Healy, playing his 126th match, scored his eighth ODI century in which he hit 27 fours and two sixes. Voll hit seven fours and one six during his innings while Mooney’s innings included 10 fours and one six. Annabel Sutherland (23) and Nicola Carey (34 runs from 15 balls) scored quickly in the end. Sneh Rana (two wickets for 66 runs) took two wickets for India. Sri Charani (2 for 106) also took two wickets but became only the third bowler to concede more than 100 runs in an ODI.

India lost wickets at frequent intervals while chasing the target. Vice captain and in-form Smriti Mandhana could not even open the account and was the first player to be out in the second over. After which Pratika Rawal (27) and Jemimah Rodrigues (42) added 54 runs for the second wicket. But problems increased after Pratika was out in the eighth over. Rodrigues was playing well by hitting nine boundaries but she was the next player to be out. Harleen Deol (14) also could not make any significant contribution. There were a lot of expectations from captain Harmanpreet Kaur but she could score only 25 runs in 33 balls and was trapped LBW by Alana King. Richa Ghosh (18) and Kashvi Gautam also disappointed. In the end, Deepti Sharma (29) and Sneh Rana added 63 runs for the eighth wicket but it was not enough.

Deepti was LBW by King in the 40th over. Rana, who was included in the team for this match, made an impact with both bat and ball. First he took two wickets and then scored 44 runs in 74 balls with the bat. But the Indian team was reduced to 224 runs in 45.1 overs. India had lost the first two ODIs by six and five wickets respectively. However, the visiting team had won the last three-match T20 series 2-1. Australia now leads 8-4 on points in this series across all three formats. The trophy for the series in all three formats will be decided on the basis of points, with two points for each T20 and 50-over win and four points for a Test win.

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