By MARK REY MONTEJO
Two-time PCA Open champion AJ Lim produced a strong opening set but failed to sustain his momentum and dropped a 6-7 (3), 6-2, 6-4 loss to Zhenxiong Dong in the quarterfinal of the ITF M15 Tianjin Tournament in China Saturday, June 29.
After beating two Chinese rivals in the first two rounds, Lim found Dong a resilient fighter as the crowd favorite recovered mightily to win the next set convincingly.
The third set was again tight but the Chinese drew inspiration from the crowd to complete his comeback.
Dong will face top seeded Indian Sasikumar Mukund in the semis.
Backed by sportsman Jean Henri Lhuillier and the Cebuana Lhuillier Sports, Lim an earlier beat Sheng Tang (7-5, 3-0, retired), and Hanyi Liu (6-1, 6-3).
