Alyssa Healy’s 170 against England (Source: @MitchellGlenn/x.com)
If the topic is about being absolutely brilliant in the 22 yards, the first name that comes to mind is Australia. Names like Glenn McGrath, Ricky Ponting, and Mitchell Starc flood the conversation, but here’s the twist: the spotlight isn’t just on male cricketers.
Alyssa Healy needs no introduction, Australia’s unstoppable star, an eight-time World Cup winner, and a born leader. Yet, between all her sky-high heroics, there is a special tale of a World Cup 170 when England Women faced the real fire of Healy. As the legend prepares to retire from the game, it is worth remembering the classic knock before the Australian cricket bid adieu to the superstar.
Healy takes center stage and redefines the Australia-England rivalry
The game of cricket without rivalry feels like a delicious curry without salt. Since the beginning of the sport, rivalries made it crazier, and no rivalry has taken a fiercer turn than the England-Australia rivalry. From the longest format onward, this fierce contest spread like wildfire, gripping fans across the world and refusing to be extinguished.
It may be underrated in Women’s cricket, but it holds some of the iconic tales of it. When the tigresses take the field, fans hold their breath, and on the World Cup stage, hearts race even faster as the excitement reaches an untouchable level. Every match becomes a spectacle, proving that the thrill of rivalry touches every corner of the cricket world.
In the history of women’s cricket, the iconic Australia-England rivalry has produced some unforgettable performances. Just like that, Alyssa Healy haunted the English side with a remarkable 170-run knock on the World Cup stage in 2022. That innings didn’t just win a match; it wrote a legendary chapter in the rivalry’s history.
A 'Healy-Fied' innings turns England’s day into a nightmare
Over the years, the Australian wicketkeeper-batters have turned heads as the world remained in awe of Adam Gilchrist’s swift reflex, followed by fiery batting. The Women’s team of the Australian side got their own Gilchrist when Alyssa Healy made her debut. From the very start, Healy has produced iconic innings, but nothing matched the fireworks she unleashed in the final of the Women’s ODI World Cup 2022.
The stakes were already high for the final clash, and the magic of the Australia-England rivalry added the missing spice to it. Coming to bowling first, England Women’s bowler eyed domination, but Alyssa Healy’s fury was enough to turn the tide.
While opening the innings, Healy looked unstoppable as she stitched a magical 160-run opening partnership with Rachael Haynes. Putting the lethal English attack, the Aussie skipper smashed a fifty in 62 balls, swinging the bat on high.
Where the rivals planned to restrict her, she defied every odds with unreal brilliance. Leaving the opponent helpless, she tightened her grip and smashed a stunning hundred in 100 balls. Scoring a World Cup hundred is every batter’s ultimate dream, and Healy didn’t just chase it; she owned it with unforgettable style.
The night gets worse as Healy commands the game
The greatness knows no limits, and nothing can prove it better than Healy’s knock on that day. After she reached the magical three-figure mark, she started dominating even harder. With her sights set on a deserved 150, she sent the ball flying to all parts and reached the milestone in just 129 deliveries.
The world expected a double ton, even the batter set her eyes on that, but destiny favored England as Anya Shrubsole hit the much-awaited jackpot. In the third delivery of the 46th over, she dismissed Healy, and the domination came to an end. Scoring 170 runs in 138 deliveries, she smashed 26 boundaries.
Across her glittering career, Alyssa Healy has smashed seven ODI centuries, many of them match-winners. But the iconic 170 stood taller than the rest, turning into a World Cup-winning masterpiece. As the Australian legend is ready to take the one last shot of her career, that innings will be forever in the record book.
