Alyssa Healy Retires as the Cricketer With a One-of-a-Kind Guinness Record

Alyssa Healy, one of cricket’s greatest, announces retirement after an illustrious career filled with World Cups, records, and honours. She remains unmatched for her one-of-a-kind Guinness World Record catch, a feat no other cricketer has attempted.

Alyssa Healy Retires as the Cricketer With a One-of-a-Kind Guinness Record (Image Source: Google)

Alyssa Healy, one of the greatest cricketers of all time, has announced retirement. She will retire after the upcoming multi-format series against India. Leave aside plethora of runs and the number of victims, the list of trophies in her cabinet and the honours she has received, are unparalleled:

*Two ODI World Cups

* Six T20 World Cups

* One Commonwealth Games Gold

* Four Ashes series

*ICC Women’s T20I player of the year

* Belinda Clark Award, Australia’s highest honour in women’s cricket, in 2019

*Her highest Test score is 99, same as husband Mitchell Starc’s

She represented Australia in 10 Tests, 123 ODIs and 162 T20Is; recording more than 7000 runs, including eight hundreds and claiming 275 dismissals.

Healy is credited with advocating the growth of women’s cricket and she was one of the forces behind the launch of WPL. She is all set to commence her second innings, this time behind the microphone in full flow and the cricketing world is waiting for the insights into the game from her.

In addition to all this Alyssa Healy has something more to her credit which is unique and an accolade no other woman cricketer has attempted. Women cricketers have set numerous records which find mention as Guinness World Records but none of these were attempted for Guinness. On the other hand, Alyssa Healy attempted something especially for a Guinness World Record.

To mark the release of tickets for sale, one year before the Women's T20 World Cup 2020, in Australia, an event was organized at the MCG in February 2019, where Healy attempted to create a world record for taking a catch of a ball dropped from the maximum height. The world record in her name is taking a catch of a ball, dropped by a drone from 80 meters above the MCG turf – the height of the top of the light towers at the famous venue. She broke the record of 62 metres set by England’s Kristen Baumgartner in 2016. Once the record was in the name of former England captain Nasser Hussain also and it measured 49 metres.

Australia and the ICC had planned various events to popularise the T20 World Cup 2020 to set a new world record for the attendance at a women's sport event and this ‘catch’ was one of the events held to draw the attention .

The path , velocity and swing of dropping a ball, which went up in the air off the bat and the ball dropped from a drone are quite different (because it just gets dropped) as well as make it difficult. That’s why before attempting for a record, Alyssa Healy was extended practice attempts:

First practice attempt: She couldn’t get a hand on the ball,

Second practice attempt: The way, ball went straight through her gloves was the cause for concern, Healy said, ‘You don't get the cue from the ball going up in the air off the bat and it was swinging a lot on the way down because it just gets dropped.’

First final attempt: For the record, she needed to beat the 62m (203 ft 4.9 in) mark set by amateur cricketerBaumgartner and Healy caught the ball that went 65.2m up into the air. The record was her now.

Second final attempt: She caught a ball that went up 72.3m.

Third final attempt: She had saved her best for the last attempt and this time she caught a ball that was launched up to 82.5m in the air.

She was elated to catch the ball creating the record. The record still stands in the name of Healy. Incidentally, a year later, Australia beat India in the final of the Women’s T20 World Cup, in a jam packed MCG.

Afterwards, a bowled over Alyssa said: “It was pure elation to get the Guinness World Records title.