A half-century by Ritu Kanoujiya helped Chitwan Rhinos register their second consecutive win in the Women's Champions League Twenty20 tournament as they registered an empathetic 89-run victory over Lalitpur Falcons on Friday while Biratnagar Titans edged past Pokhara Paltan by six wickets for their second win.

Winning the toss and batting first, Kanoujiya’s 58 from 55 balls helped the Rhinos post 135-3 in the match played at the Tribhuvan University cricket ground. Rhinos then bowled out the Falcons for 46 runs for the convincing victory.

Pyari Chaudhary also added 22 runs for Rhinos while opener Kajal Shrestha contributed 15. Captain Nary Thapa, the only batter to score in double digits, was the highest contributor for Falcons with 17 runs under her belt. Kabita Gautam picked three wickets for Rhinos to bundle out the Falcons cheaply. Kanoujiya also grabbed two wickets while Rekha Rawal and Suman Khatiwada had one each.

The second victory in a row meant Rhinos stand jointly atop the standings with four points along with Biratnagar Titans. But Biratnagar Titans enjoy top position by the virtue of better run rate. In quite a sharp contrast, Falcons remain without a win from their two matches. Rhinos had also won their opening day match against Kat Queens Kathmandu while Falcons had lost against the Titans on Thursday. Paltans, meanwhile, are winless having lost their two matches. Titans had defeated the Falcons for their first victory on Thursday. Paltans had also lost to Kat Queens Kathmandu the same day.

In another match, Kabita Kunwar’s 22 runs late in the innings and another 16 by opener Sita Rana Magar helped the Paltans post a paltry 94 runs total after they won the toss and elected to bat first. Titans’s Sabnam Rai took two wickets and Sonu Khadka had one.

In reply, Jyoti Panday scored 22 and Laxmi Chaudhary hit 23 before the Titans made 95-4 in the 15th over.

In another context, Titan's captain Sarita Magar was fined 10 percent of her match fee and other players and five percent respectively for the slow over rate while defending their total against the Falcons and Pokhara Paltan. Match umpires had reported the slow over rate to match referee Sameer Khan who then imposed the fine. Titans captain Magar pleaded guilty to the offence and accepted the proposed action. The team were also given one demerit point for the offence.

Paltan have an uphill task to register their first win as they play against the undefeated Rhinos while the Titans will also look to continue their winning streak against the Queens in the other match slated for Saturday.