The 21-year-old, ranked at number 1,857 in the world, offered another player a sum of $2,000 (£1,500/€1,800) to deliberately underperform in a singles matches and $600 (£460/€535) in a doubles contest at an International Tennis Federation (ITF) Futures event in Stellenbosch in November 2015, according to the Tennis Integrity Unit (TIU).

The TIU, established in 2008 to combat betting-related corruption in the sport, confirmed that the player Chetty approached to try and fix the matches rejected the advances and reported the issue to the body.

The TIU then investigated the matter and referred the case to anti-corruption hearing officer Ian Mill QC, who decided a life ban was the appropriate punishment.

The identity of the other competitor will remain confidential under the guidelines of the Tennis Anti-Corruption Programme (TACP), the TIU said.

Chetty, who reached a career high ranking of 1,370 in June last year, breached two key elements of the TACP.

He was found guilty of breaking rule D.1.e, which states: "No Covered Person shall, directly or indirectly, solicit or facilitate any Player to not use his or her best efforts in any Event."

The South African also broke rule D.1.g, which says "No Covered Person shall, directly or indirectly, offer or provide any money, benefit or Consideration to any other Covered Person with the intention of negatively influencing a Player's best efforts in any Event".

“Covered Person” refers to players, as well as other individuals involved in the sport, such as coaches.

"The lifetime ban from all professional tennis applies with immediate effect and means the player is not allowed to compete in, or attend, any tournament or event organised or sanctioned by the governing bodies of the sport," a TIU statement on Chetty’s case said.

The announcement comes after Frenchman Constant Lestienne received a seven-month ban and a fine of $10,000 (£7,700/€9,000) for betting on 220 matches between February 2012 and June 2015.

Half of the suspension - three months and two weeks - has been suspended on the condition that the world number 164 commits no further offences under the TACP.

Allegations of widespread match-fixing in tennis were revealed on the eve of the Australian Open, the first Grand Slam of the year, in January.

The most concern in terms of match fixing and betting-related corruption within the sport centres around Futures events, the level at which Chetty competes, due to the lack of available prize money.