Singapore tennis junior Ethan Lye was crowned the boys' Under-14 singles champion at the Sydney Medibank Age tournament on Wednesday, beating the fifth seed Samuel Armand 6-7 (7), 6-1, 6-1.

The gold-level event gathered the best juniors in New South Wales and also attracted competitors from elsewhere, including New Zealand.

Despite being unseeded at the tournament, Ethan also beat the second, fourth and eighth seeds.

He told The Straits Times in a phone interview from Sydney where he has been based since last September: "I've been putting in a lot of hard work. I think the key (to winning) was just about staying mentally tough throughout the tournament."

Ethan, who turns 14 in October, also won the lead-in to the Medibank Age event last week.

He trains at the Voyager Tennis Academy in Sydney where he is on a three-year partial scholarship. He is under coaches like Luke Bourgeois, a former professional who was a practice partner for two years with tennis great Roger Federer.