Zach McGuire won a gruelling under-16 boys battle against Tristan Pettit in the Bermuda Lawn Tennis Association Jingle Bell tournament at the WER Joell Tennis Stadium on Sunday.

The two teenagers, both students at Saltus Grammar School, battled it out for two hours on the court, with McGuire winning 6-4, 6-4. It was the second energy-sapping encounter for Pettit, whose semi-final encounter against Jordan Spriggs also breached the two-hour mark, before Pettit prevailed 4-6, 6-0, 6-4.

The day before Pettit floored Jaden Jones 7-6 (2), 6-0 to win the under-14 boys title. Hasan Khan picked up the under-12 boys title with a straight sets victory over Julian Hands.

Chloe McBrearty dominated the girls under-12 category, defeating Gwennan Matthews in the final. That was the only age group to feature girls, with no entries in the other categories.

Sophie Campeau, one of the tournament organisers, said despite a few hitches, including saw some courts not being accessible on certain days, it was satisfying to see more under-12 girls entering the competition.

“We were very pleased because we had more under-12 girls signing up and there were eight of them, so that’s a good thing,’’ Pettit said.

“In total, we had 36 entries for the tournament, which is a decent turnout. The youngsters displayed good sportsmanship and were very self-sufficient as they had to call their own lines and record their own scores.

“We had good-quality tennis and there was a big improvement in the quality of play. The more they get exposed, they get better.

“We try to do this tournament four times a year and the last one we had was in September. It was called the Back to School, but it was the same format. We’re really thankful to AXA XL for their sponsorship. They sponsor a group of four events, so we’re trying to do it quarterly.”