Real Madrid were held to a third consecutive La Liga draw in a 1-1 tie at Girona on Sunday, allowing Barcelona to retain pole position.

Azzedine Ounahi fired the hosts into a surprise lead before half-time, with Kylian Mbappe earning Madrid a point from the penalty spot.

After Barcelona beat Alaves on Saturday to move top of the table, Madrid needed a victory at Girona to reclaim top spot but now sit second, a point behind the champions.

Earlier Alberto Moleiro helped Villarreal, third, move back ahead of fourth-place Atletico Madrid with a stoppage time winner in a 3-2 victory at Real Sociedad.

Real Madrid’s draw increases the pressure on Madrid coach Xabi Alonso, after recent rumours suggesting his future is insecure in the Madrid dugout.

“We are up there, it’s all very even, it’s a long season and we have to continue,” Alonso told reporters.

“I liked the reaction from the players. It was not enough to turn it around but we were close, and we have to continue with the unity we have, being self-critical enough, and wanting to win away from home.”

Madrid travel to face Athletic Bilbao on Wednesday for a fourth consecutive league match on the road, a game moved because of the club’s participation in the Spanish Super Cup in January.

“The table will be hard-fought, there will be lots of movement,” added Alonso.

Mbappe and Arda Guler fired off target for Madrid early on in a hotly-contested but scrappy clash, in front of a raucous home crowd.

French superstar Mbappe had a goal ruled out for handball moments before Morocco international Ounahi fired Girona ahead, rifling home from just inside the area to stun their illustrious visitors.

Catalan minnows Girona, 18th, have twice beaten Real Madrid at Montilivi since making their top flight debut in 2017 and for a while it looked like they were going to manage it again.

Real Madrid goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois made a stunning save to tip away Vanat’s drive across goal before Los Blancos fought back.

After having a goal disallowed for offside Vinicius was clumsily felled in the box by Hugo Rincon.

Mbappe smashed the resulting penalty into the bottom left corner past Gazzaniga’s dive for his 14th La Liga goal of the campaign.

“Absolutely not the result we wanted tonight, but the league is still on and very long,” wrote Mbappe on social media network Instagram.

“We need to change this dynamic and show who we are as a team.”

Keeping the pressure on 

Villarreal playmaker Moleiro netted twice in the second half of a thrilling game in San Sebastian.

Villarreal secured their fifth consecutive league win to stay firmly in the Spanish title fight.

Ayoze Perez sent the visitors ahead midway through the first half and teed up Moleiro for Villarreal’s second soon after the break.

Real Sociedad fought back strongly, with Carlos Soler netting on the hour mark.

The Basque side ramped up the pressure and levelled in the final stages through a spectacular Ander Barrenetxea free-kick.

However, Moleiro had the final say, firing home in the 95th minute to maintain his team’s momentum.

“We had that little bit of luck to get three very important points, as important as they were difficult (to get),” said Marcelino.

“To get 32 points out of a possible 42 to me seems a stunning achievement.”

Elsewhere, Real Betis claimed a 2-0 win at Sevilla in a fiery derby clash which was briefly suspended after home fans threw bottles onto the pitch.

The referee ordered players from the field in the 87th minute at the Ramon Sanchez-Pizjuan stadium, with the match resuming 15 minutes later as Betis held on to fifth place.

Star batsman Virat Kohli slammed a record-extending 52nd one-day international century, scoring 135 off 120 balls to lead India to a thrilling 17-run victory over a determined South Africa in the first ODI on Sunday at Ranchi.

Kohli shared a second-wicket partnership of 136 runs with fellow stalwart Rohit Sharma, setting India on course for a competitive 349-8.

South Africa’s number eight, Corbin Bosch, made a valiant 67 off 51 balls, keeping his team in contention until the final moments. Entering the 50th over, the visitors needed 18 runs with one wicket left, but Bosch fell on the second ball, leaving South Africa all out for 332.

Earlier, Matthew Breetzke (72) and Marco Jansen (70) had forged a fighting 97-run stand for the sixth wicket, reviving the chase after South Africa slipped to 11-3 and 77-4.

Kuldeep Yadav was the standout bowler for India, taking 4-68, including a crucial double strike to dismiss Jansen and Breetzke in just three balls—a turning point in the match that helped India secure a 1-0 lead in the three-match series.

Kohli, now 37, raised his 83rd international century across all three formats with a boundary off Jansen, celebrating with the raucous home crowd.

“If you’ve played over 300 games and so much cricket, you know your reflexes and physical ability are there to bat long,” said Kohli, the player of the match.

“As long as you’re hitting the ball well and playing good cricket, it’s about being physically fit, mentally ready, and excited.”

Kohli mania

An enthusiastic Indian fan breached security and ran onto the field to touch Virat Kohli’s feet before being restrained.

Kohli now holds the record for the most ODI hundreds, with Indian legend Sachin Tendulkar second with 49.

In a single format, he also leads the list, while Tendulkar’s 51 hundreds came in Tests.

Kohli and 38-year-old Rohit Sharma, who scored 57, now only play ODIs after retiring from T20s and Tests.

Their presence strengthened India, led by KL Rahul in the absence of the injured Shubman Gill, following a 2-0 Test series whitewash against South Africa.

Rohit lost fellow opener Yashasvi Jaiswal early for 18, but Kohli walked in to a roar from a 38,000-strong crowd.

The pair steadied the innings before Rohit was trapped lbw by Marco Jansen.

Rohit hit three sixes in his 51-ball knock, taking his total to 352 sixes in ODIs, surpassing Pakistan’s Shahid Afridi (351).

Kohli accelerated after reaching his first century since February, hitting off-spinner Prenelan Subrayen for two fours and two sixes in the 39th over, scoring 21 runs. He eventually fell to Nandre Burger, caught by Ryan Rickelton, after hitting 11 fours and seven sixes.

KL Rahul contributed 60 off 56 balls, while Ravindra Jadeja added 32 off 20.

Corbin Bosch recorded his first ODI half-century, keeping South Africa in the contest, making the series opener an exciting match ahead of the second ODI in Raipur on Wednesday.

“Great to sit in the change room and watch the guys do their thing,” said stand-in skipper Aiden Markram. “Never losing the belief that we can pull off a rabbit from the hat.”