In Tehran’s Azadi Stadium, Georgian defender Giorgi Gvelesiani scored twice for Persepolis. He scored first from the penalty spot in the 45th minute but his goal was cancelled out by Hossein Goudarzi from the spot in the 47th minute.
Persepolis defender Ali Nemati was sent off in the 62nd minute after receiving his second yellow card.
With 10 minutes remaining, Persepolis forward Nabil Bahoui was brought down in the penalty area and the referee awarded the host a penalty. Gvelesiani converted his penalty to seal a 2-1 win over Shams Azar.
Earlier in the day, IPL leader Estegghlal shared the spoils in a 1-1 draw against Gol Gohar in Sirjan.
Gol Gohar forward Masih Zahedi found the back of the net in the 20th minute and Kevin Yamga equalized the match from the penalty spot in the 45th minute.
Eight-man Sepahan suffered a 1-0 loss against Aluminum in Isfahan’s Naghsh-e Jahan Stadium. Aref Haji Eidi was on target in the 80th minute.
Sepahan forward Reza Asadi, midfielder Bryan Dabo and captain Mohammad Karimi were shown red cards in the final minutes of the match.
In Ghaemshahr, Nassaji came from two goals down to earn a 2-2 draw against Havadar, struggling Esteghlal Kuzestan beat Mes Ragfsanjan 2-1 and Paykan and Foolad shared the spoils in a goalless draw.
On Monday, Malavan will host Tractor in Bandar Anzali and Sanat Naft meet Zob Ahan in Abadan.
Esteghlal leads the IPL table with 29 points, followed by Sepahan and Persepolis, who have 27 and 25 points.