Sunil Narine played an inspirational role with the ball and then provided a boost with the bat as Kolkata Knight Riders beat Royal Challengers Bangalore with two balls remaining to move to within one match of their first Indian Premier League final since 2014.
First, Narine (4-21) was essential in ensuring Bangalore could only set a modest target of 138 runs as he took a match-high four wickets, and then his arrival at the crease provided KKR with direction at just the right time as they ultimately reached 139-6.
Delhi Capitals await in the next round as they prepare to tussle for the right to face Chennai Super Kings in the final, marking an incredible turnaround in KKR's fortunes after winning only two of their first seven matches prior to the season's suspension in May.
Bangalore had initially looked in good shape as Virat Kohli (39) and Devdutt Padikkal (21) helped them to 49-0 after five overs, before the latter went to Lockie Ferguson at the start of the sixth.
They did not lose another wicket until Narine's first over in the 10th as he tempted Srikar Bharat to pick out Venkatesh Iyer. The same man then accounted for captain Kohli, who misjudged a delivery when going for a slog sweep, AB de Villiers (11) and Glenn Maxwell (15) to put KKR in complete control.
Shubman Gill (29) started the chase well, but KKR hit something of a rut and were 79-3 through 11 overs when Narine came in to again turn the tide.
Three sixes from the first three legal deliveries he faced on his way to 26 set KKR on course, even if RCB forced an intriguing finish when Mohammed Siraj claimed Narine and then Dinesh Karthik (10) in the 18th over.
Seven from Eoin Morgan and Shakib Al Hasan off four balls in the final over got the job done.
Narine the double threat
This was a wonderful showing from Narine, further highlighting the surprising nature of his omission from the West Indies squad for the upcoming T20 World Cup. His four wickets were twice as many as anyone else, while RCB only took 21 runs from his deliveries. He then gave KKR the kick up the backside that they needed with the bat, initially getting 23 runs from just nine balls.
Christian taken for a ride
The main difference between these sides on the day, and Kohli accepted as much afterwards, was the bowling. Dan Christian may have only bowled 1.4 overs, but that was an exceptionally expensive cameo, costing 29 runs, the joint-most of the RCB bowlers.
de Kock plunders 115 as Royals defeat Amazon Warriors to go top of CPL standings
Quinton de Kock pummelled Guyana Amazon Warriors with a brilliant century as Barbados Royals recorded a 32-run victory at Kensington Oval on Saturday to move to the Republic Bank Caribbean Premier League's (CPL) top spot.
After the Warriors elected to bowl, de Kock dominated the Royals' total of 205-6 and batted almost through the innings to compile an outstanding 115 off 68 balls.
Left-arm spinner Keshav Maharaj claimed three wickets as the Warriors finished well short on 173-5 to slump to their first loss of the season.
After a heartbreaking two-wicket defeat to Trinbago Knight Riders the night earlier, the Royals rejigged their batting order with Kadeem Alleyne replacing Rahkeem Cornwall.
Alleyne enjoyed the promotion and monstered a couple of massive sixes, including off Moeen Ali who made his CPL debut. But his whirlwind 22 off nine balls ended in the third over when he holed out to quick Dwaine Pretorius.
After a cautious start, de Kock took over with a calculated assault on Shamar Joseph in the seventh over. But Joseph, desperate to rediscover his best form, hit back after striking de Kock on the body in a painful blow.
The South African shook off the discomfort and rolled to his half-century off 34 balls. He particularly enjoyed hitting straight down the ground, highlighted by smacking a slower delivery back over the head of left-arm seamer Raymon Reifer.
Wickets fell around de Kock, who appeared to be batting on a different surface as he reached his century off 60 balls. He joined Evin Lewis as the only batters to hit a ton so far in this season's CPL.
De Kock hit a couple of more sixes before falling with three balls left in the innings. After struggling with the ball at the death against the Knight Riders, a determined Jason Holder smashed three sixes in a row in the penultimate over off seamer Keemo Paul.
Holder's mood continued to brighten after he claimed Warriors opener Azam Khan with his first delivery in the second over. The Warriors' chase stuttered when a frustrated Tim Robinson was stumped after being deceived by a flighted delivery from Maharaj.
Shimron Heytmeyer started with consecutive sixes off Maharaj and then smashed another one into the crowd on the resumption from a one-hour rain delay.
But Maharaj exacted revenge by enticing a false shot from Hetmyer in the ninth over as the Warriors' chase fell away despite cameos from Moeen, Paul and captain Shai Hope.
The Royals moved to 4-1 and replaced the Warriors (3-1) at the top of the table.
Real Sociedad 0-2 Real Madrid: Vinicius, Mbappe penalties close gap on Barca
Vinicius Junior and Kylian Mbappe both scored penalties as Real Madrid saw off Real Sociedad 2-0 at the Reale Arena.
Carlo Ancelotti's side moved to within a point of LaLiga leaders Barcelona, who visit fifth-place Girona on Sunday.
Already without the likes of Jude Bellingham, David Alaba, Eduardo Camavinga and Aurelien Tchouameni, Madrid suffered another injury blow in the 24th minute when Brahim Diaz was forced off with a muscular issue.
After a goalless first half, the visitors broke through 13 minutes after the restart with Vinicius slotting home from 12 yards after Sergio Gomez handled Arda Guler's shot.
Vinicus was then felled for Madrid's second penalty, which was awarded following a VAR review, with Mbappe making no mistake in sealing all three points.
Data Debrief: Madrid extend unbeaten streak
Extending their unbeaten LaLiga streak to 37 matches, Madrid have now won four successive away league games against Basque opposition for the first time since a run of four such victories between 2011 and 2013.
By contrast, Sociedad have now suffered four straight home defeats in the Spanish top flight for the first time since 2007.
Bournemouth 0-1 Chelsea: Late Nkunku strike snatches victory for Blues
Christopher Nkunku proved Chelsea's hero as his late strike secured a narrow 1-0 win over Bournemouth in the Premier League.
The forward climbed off the bench to strike the winner five minutes from time at the Vitality Stadium, where Robert Sanchez kept out Evanilson's first-half penalty.
Bournemouth looked the more likely to take all three points in the contest, with Marcus Tavernier's long-range thunderbolt rattling the crossbar early on.
Sanchez then came to rescue on 38 minutes by denying Evanilson from 12 yards, albeit after he had conceded the spot-kick for a foul on the Brazilian.
The woodwork denied the Cherries again after the break, with Ryan Christie seeing his precise low effort hit the outside of Sanchez's right post.
However, it was Chelsea who snatched the points with five minutes remaining. Receiving the ball from Jadon Sancho, Nkunku cleverly skipped away from a couple of challenges before slotting past Mark Travers in the Bournemouth net.
Data Debrief: More happy travels for super sub Nkunku
Nkunku's piece of individual brilliance settled the contest. All four of his Premier League goals for Chelsea have come away from home as a substitute.
The Blues held out at the other end to claim their first away league clean sheet in 18 attempts, while winning four straight matches on the road for the first time since 2022.
Meanwhile, history was made at the Vitality Stadium with the referee showing a total of 14 yellow cards; the highest amount issued in a single Premier League game.
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