Abhijeet, Aniruddh strike as Jodhpur beat Sikar by 5 wkts

Jaipur: Riding on Abhijeet Tomar’s splendid knock of 70 off 43 balls, Jodhpur defeated Sikar by five wickets to bring their second win in the league stage of the Rajasthan Premier League (RPL) at SMS Stadium here on Sunday. His knock was studded with five 4s and three 6s. While Abhijeet laid the foundation for Sikar’s win as they chased down 162 in the afternoon game, it was Aniruddh Chauhan’s cameo of 23 runs from 7 balls that ensured the team crossed the finish line without further ado.Aniruddh took veteran left-arm seamer Aniket Choudhary (4-0-51-1) to cleaners in the penultimate over as he struck four consecutive boundaries and finished the match with a six. Jodhpur exploited the batting conditions well.Earlier, made to bat first, Sikar had an ordinary start. They lost their first wicket in the first over, and while another opener Ankit Lamba held one end en route to his unbeaten 55 off 51 balls, his strike rate failed to make a difference to the scoreline. Mahipal Lomror and Ramnivas Golada added pace to their innings with the former being more aggressive in his approach. Lomror slammed 34-ball 62 that included five 6s and four 4s while Ramnivas Golada struck 41 off 29 balls. But Sikar needed more from their other batters.Talking about his knock, Abhijeet said that he is very familiar with the ground in Jaipur. “I have played a lot of matches at SMS Stadium. It is our home ground. Also, the team badly needed this win to keep their knockouts chances alive,” he said during the post- match presentation.Hooda blitzkrieg hands Kota third win: A blistering knock of unbeaten 74 off 31 balls from captain Deepak Hooda helped Kota overcome Bhilwara by five wickets. They now have three wins to their name in four matches.