Artemiev goes for his tried and true English Opening, getting an advantageous pawn structure in the center.
While Nepo isn't in any objective danger with a healthy structure and a space advantage, Artemiev has succeeded in creating a dynamic game.
Artemiev's queen is currently exposed on the queenside, while Nepo has successfully managed to keep his potential weaknesses on that side of the board intact.
Despite the position being equal, Artemiev is already falling behind on the clock!
While Nepo's rook maneuver seems strange, the rook had done its job by forcing Artemiev to reposition his pieces. Artemiev's long-term plan is to open up the center, but he is in no rush to do so, instead making small improvements in his position.
Artemiev's queen was in danger of getting trapped, forcing him to reveal his cards in the center. While this gives Artemiev a potential space advantage, Nepo's position remains solid while Artemiev's pieces are slightly displaced.
Things are looking grim for Artemiev, who is still far from obtaining any advantage in the position.
As a result of Artemiev's break in the center, he is left with an isolated pawn that gives Nepo a long-term advantage. Nepo maintains control over the position, and it remains difficult for Artemiev to find a way to generate threats.
Nepo now dominates the light squares, making any pawn break impossible for his opponent. Artemiev now has less than three minutes on his clock and is no closer to making progress.
Artemiev will have to hope for a blunder to win this game!
Artemiev desperately tries to create threats, but Nepo has everything under control. Unless Artemiev finds a way to blow open the position, this position will slowly fall apart due to lacking any active plans.
Artemiev sacrifices a pawn in a last-ditch effort to generate active play, but this sacrifice doesn't really accomplish much. Artemiev is in panic mode and is looking for any way to create dynamic chances.
Despite Artemiev's best efforts to complicate the game, Nepo was never in any danger in this game. Artemiev struggled to gain an advantage in the middlegame, giving Nepo the opportunity to force his opponent into an unfavorable pawn structure. Not only did Artemiev lack active play, but he quickly ended up far down on the clock.
A convincing match win by Nepo, who advances to the decider match!