The Open Era
Great Britain · born Farnborough, Kent, 1966 · Wimbledon and Australian girls' champion 1984
All playersBack to the rankings
2
Junior major singles titles, both in 1984
17
Her age at the 1984 Wimbledon girls' title
No. 24
Career-high singles ranking, December 1985
21
Her age on retiring from the tour
Born in Farnborough, Kent, in 1966 and coached by Derek Bone, Croft started at nine and was representing her country at 12. In 1984 she won the girls' singles at Wimbledon and the Australian Open. A year later she won the Virginia Slims of San Diego, beating Wendy Turnbull in the final in straight sets, and in December 1985 she reached a world ranking of No. 24. She played the Wightman Cup for Great Britain from 1983 to 1986 and the Fed Cup in 1985 and 1986. She stopped playing in early 1988, aged 21, and became a television presenter, first on Channel 4's Treasure Hunt and then ITV's Interceptor, later commentating on Wimbledon for the BBC and working for Sky Sports and Eurosport.
| Major singles titles | 2: Australian (1984); Wimbledon (1984) |
|---|---|
| Girls' singles finals | Wimbledon 1984: beat Elna Reinach 3-6, 6-3, 6-2, seeded third. Australian 1984 at Kooyong: beat Helena Dahlström 6-0, 6-1 |
| Wimbledon women's singles | Third round 1984, aged 17: beat Petra Jauch-Delhees 6-3, 6-0 and Michelle Torres 6-3, 2-6, 7-5, then lost to the second seed Chris Evert Lloyd 6-3, 6-4 |
"I needed to put on normal clothes in the mornings and not worry about my backhand."
The person behind the player.
Wimbledon 1984
At 17 she played both the women's and the girls' singles. In the women's event she beat Petra Jauch-Delhees and Michelle Torres before Chris Evert Lloyd beat her 6-3, 6-4. In the girls' event, seeded third, she lost the first set of the final to Elna Reinach of South Africa and won 3-6, 6-3, 6-2.
Source: WikipediaSan Diego 1985
In 1985 she won the Virginia Slims of San Diego, beating the Australian Wendy Turnbull in straight sets in the final. It lifted her to No. 24 in the world by December. She played on until February 1988 without reaching another final.
Source: Wikipedia1988
"I just woke up one day and decided: 'I don't want to do this anymore,'" she later said. Her mother had asked whether her heart was still in it, and John Newcombe advised her to get away and decide whether she wanted to continue. "I already pretty much knew I didn't."
Source: The Tennis GazetteAfter 1988
Straight after retiring she became the new face of Channel 4's Treasure Hunt, taking over from Anneka Rice, then fronted her own ITV show, Interceptor. In 2005 she won ITV's Celebrity Wrestling, and in 2023 she reached fourth place on the BBC's Strictly Come Dancing with Johannes Radebe.
Source: Wikipedia2021
The International Club of Great Britain gave her its Sportsmanship Award in 2021, an honour for a British player's attitude across a career. Earlier winners include Sue Barker, Virginia Wade, Tim Henman, Greg Rusedski and Jeremy Bates.
Source: WikipediaFree membership: player news, the grass court Atlas, the rankings and the grass season calendar.
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