Move over Godzilla vs Kong, Harmonster vs Megalodon was the blockbuster of the season and the WPL final delivered perfectly. On the same day, South Africa and West Indies scripted the T20I sequel to the 438 ODI. Afghanistan notched a maiden series victory over Pakistan, but Ireland had no luck in Bangladesh. And if last week felt busy, the IPL kicked off its 16th season last night. Here's all the news and events from a jam-packed week of cricket.
Harmanpreet breaks knockout curse and Lanning's challenge to cap off fitting WPL finale
A tense WPL final, a close finish and the first time Harmanpreet Kaur got to put one over rival captain - both national and franchise - Meg Lanning: it was the cherry on top for Mumbai Indians, the winners of the inaugural edition and the maximum team of the WPL. The tournament was short and frenetic but changed much for women's cricket in India - ESPNcricinfo staff look at the takeaways. Mark Nicholas agrees - he says with the WPL, women's cricket is no longer just an intangible idea.
Why Pakistan's loss to Afghanistan might not be such a bad thing
Afghanistan beat Pakistan in a series for the first ever time, so what if they did it against a young and inexperienced Pakistan squad? Danyal Rasool says Pakistan were given the chance to experiment with their team and they took it. Now the question is, will they give their new players time to find their way?
Romario Shepherd fireworks, Alzarri Joseph five-for seal series for West Indies
West Indies sealed a 2-1 win in the T20I series, but what it will be remembered for is the record-breaking second T20I - and its 517 runs, 81 boundaries and 35 sixes.
Is the ICC's pitch-rating system fit for purpose?
The ICC recently walked back their rating for the Indore pitch during the India-Australia series to below average from poor. Scott Oliver goes behind the methodology of the rating and asks why is Brisbane 2022 below average, while Ahmedabad 2021 is not? Here's why using technology to assess pitches would help weed out many of the shortcomings of the current process.
In Litton and Rony, Bangladesh have found what they've always desired
Bangladesh completed a 2-0 sweep (barring a washout) in ODIs and a 2-1 T20I series win over Ireland. Mohammad Isam says the experienced batting duo, now together as openers, are transforming Bangladesh's white-ball batting approach
IPL 2023 - why it's going to be a season unlike any other
It's that time of the year again and love it or not - as Alagappan Muthu found out - there's plenty of new stuff to look forward to in the 16th season of the IPL, like the impact player rule and the return to home-and-away games.
How Harry Brook aimed big, failed, and took off like a rocket
England's new wunderkind makes batting look like a blast, but it wasn't always easy for him. Jonathan Doidge profiles the young batter's long journey to the national side.
Can Varun Chakravarthy come good for KKR again?
He went from being their top wicket-taker to being benched in the space of two IPL seasons, but the mystery spinner believes this is his year to bounce back. Deivarayan Muthu spoke to Varun and his coach about what's changed.
It's high time cricket regulated its pace of play
Ian Chappell bemoans the inordinate amount of time lost to field placements, mid-pitch chats and non-essential tasks; administrators need to step in to speed up the game.
Thirty things we love about cricket today
In a continued celebration of 30 years of ESPNcricinfo, Alan Gardner lists the best thing about the modern game, including timeouts, T20 leagues, DRS, Spidercam, that we can't get enough of.
Does Suryakumar Yadav hold the record for being out off the first ball most times in an ODI series?
And was the match aggregate of 517 by South Africa and West Indies a record for a T20I? Steven Lynch has the answers to all your stats and trivia questions in this week's Ask Steven.
Who became the first debutant to hit a double-century in the fourth innings of a Test?
This decade has already seen plenty of new records in cricket. How much do you know about them? Take our quiz and test yourself.