Stoke and Cardiff preserved their unbeaten runs as the points were shared in a goalless draw in the Potteries.
The hosts continued their resurgence following three successive wins, while the Bluebirds dropped out of the top six despite a third outing without defeat.
Cardiff forward Callum Robinson looked to continue his rich vein of form against Stoke and came closest to a decider, but his deflected effort was pushed on to the post.
The Potters’ best opportunities fell to Dwight Gayle, who blazed wide and was then denied by Jak Alnwick, both before the interval.
Despite a high tempo end to the fixture, neither side could find a decisive moment of quality to clinch victory.
Cardiff started promisingly as they looked to consolidate their position in the SkyBet Championship play-offs.
Inside six minutes, the travelling Bluebirds had their first effort on goal with Mark McGuinness heading straight at Jack Bonham.
A lively Robinson, who had scored three goals in as many games versus Stoke in his career, also came close early on.
The Republic of Ireland international nearly pounced on a slack Michael Rose back-pass, but an alert Bonham rushed out to diffuse the danger.
Robinson then nearly turned provider when his enticing free-kick delivery wreaked havoc, only for Yakou Meite to head wide from close range.
And Erol Bulut’s side sustained their control beyond the half-hour mark with McGuinness again going close with a glancing header.
The Potters gradually grew into the tie and threatened to snatch the advantage against the run of play.
A delicate Wouter Burger ball found Gayle in a promising position, but the forward snatched at his chance and dragged wide.
The hosts finished the half strongly thanks to Mehdi Leris and Gayle, with the latter denied by stopper Alnwick.
Cardiff nearly broke the deadlock prior to the interval when Robinson’s cutback wrongfooted Bonham, but the Stoke stopper tipped on to the post.
The visitors’ threat was not swayed by the break as Bulut’s outfit continued to impose themselves after the restart.
Karlan Grant nearly notched his second goal of the season after the hour mark, but his strike on the swivel drifted agonisingly wide.
Like the first period, the hosts began slowly but Michael Rose’s free header from a corner handed the Bluebirds a warning sign.
As the clock ticked on and legs began to tire, Alex Neil’s side flexed their attacking muscle but Josh Laurent blazed a volley harmlessly over the target.
And their wastefulness was almost punished in stoppage time by Ryan Wintle, who saw a goal-bound strike stopped impressively by Bonham.
Hull City 3-3 Ipswich Town: Tigers fight back three times to deny Tractor Boys
Ipswich Town missed the chance to move into an automatic promotion spot as play-off-chasing Hull City came from behind three times in a thrilling 3-3 Championship draw at The MKM Stadium.
Ipswich knew a victory would take them second after Leeds United were surprisingly beaten 4-0 by Queens Park Rangers on Friday, and they led on three separate occasions, George Hirst opening the scoring before Omari Hutchinson produced two brilliant strikes from the edge of the area.
However, buoyed by slip-ups from rivals Norwich City and West Brom earlier on Saturday, Hull dug deep to fight back on each occasion, Ozan Tufan and Liam Delap scoring their first two equalisers.
With Liam Rosenior's men 3-2 down with just four minutes to play, substitute Noah Ohio blasted his shot in off the crossbar to punish an error from Ipswich goalkeeper Vaclav Hladky.
The result keeps Ipswich behind second-placed Leeds on goal difference, though the Tractor Boys have a game in hand to come at Coventry City on Tuesday.
Hull, meanwhile, are two points adrift of the top six, with Norwich's goal difference advantage meaning their top-six spot is all but assured. The Tigers will, however, leapfrog West Brom if they beat Plymouth Argyle on the final day and Albion lose to Preston North End.
Data Debrief: Hutchinson's best not enough
Hutchinson was a man who deserved to be on the winning side on Saturday, giving Ryan Allsop no chance with two near-identical left-footed strikes from the right corner of the penalty area.
His goals came from an expected goals (xG) total of just 0.6, and he led all players on the pitch for shots (eight) and passes in the final third (21), also laying on three chances for his team-mates.
Al-Khaleej 0-1 Al-Nassr: Ronaldo misfires on return as Laporte nets winner
Cristiano Ronaldo returned from suspension but failed to find the net as Al-Nassr secured a 1-0 win over Al-Khaleej on Saturday, with Aymeric Laporte coming up with the decisive goal.
Ronaldo was in action for the first time since being sent off for an elbow in a 2-1 Saudi Super Cup loss to Al-Hilal earlier this month, with his initial two-match ban being reduced to one on appeal.
He missed three good chances as Al-Nassr threatened to fall further behind runaway Saudi Pro League leaders Al-Hilal, but former Manchester City defender Laporte spared his blushes by nodding Marcelo Brozovic's deep free-kick into the bottom-left corner with 68 minutes gone.
Al-Nassr remain nine points adrift of Al-Hilal at the summit in spite of their win, with Jorge Jesus' team unbeaten through 28 games this season as they close in on a record-extending 18th title.
Data Debrief: Ronaldo misfires on return
Ronaldo was presented with the Saudi Pro League's Player of the Month award for March ahead of kick-off, having scored four goals in three league appearances last month.
However, his sights were off on Saturday as he failed to net despite three of the visitors' four big chances, as defined by Opta, falling his way. He led all players on the pitch for expected goals (1.27 xG), shots (five), shots on target (three) and touches in the area (nine) without reward.
Huddersfield all but relegated from Championship while League Two play-off spots decided
Huddersfield Town saw their relegation from the Championship all but confirmed after a 1-1 draw with fellow strugglers Birmingham City on Saturday.
The Terriers avoided a defeat that would have seen them relegated on Saturday, but even a win on the final day over promotion hopefuls Ipswich Town will not be enough unless they overcome a huge goal difference of 15 goals with Plymouth Argyle.
Birmingham remain in the other relegation place and now must beat Norwich City to stand a chance of staying up with Sheffield Wednesday, Plymouth and Blackburn Rovers also still in danger.
At the other end of the table, the Canaries dropped points in a 2-2 draw with Swansea City, leaving the door open for Hull City, who face Ipswich Town later today.
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