Jill Craybas

• Residence: Huntington Beach, CA, USA
• DOB: July 4, 1974
• Birthplace: Providence, RI, USA
• Height: 5' 3" (1.60 m)
• Weight: 123 lbs. (56 kg)
• Plays: Right-handed (two-handed backhand)

Biography

Before entering the professional ranks in 1996, Jill Craybas graduated from the University of Florida in Gainesville, and was the 1996 NCAA singles champion. Her major was telecommunications and she has said in interviews that she hopes to enter this field (film or TV production) when her playing days are over. She credits all her achievements to her longtime coach, Michael Daly. Michael has worked with her from the start of her tennis career.

Craybas has won one WTA title at the Tokyo Japan Open. She beat Silvija Talaja in the final after trailing 4–0 in the third set. In the 2006 season, Craybas had reached one quarterfinal at Hobart as the eighth seed, losing to unseeded Italian Mara Santangelo in three sets. She has also reached the semifinals of a Tier III event in Memphis, a fourth-round showing at the Tier I event in Key Biscayne, Florida and a further quarterfinal appearance at Stanford in late July.

Craybas is best known for her 2005 defeat of Serena Williams in the 3rd round of Wimbledon. She beat Williams 6–3, 7–6, then lost to Serena's older sister, Venus Williams 6–0, 6–2.

Career History