Ranked outside the top 690 and carrying a five-match losing streak with no victory since January, Sachia Vickery had every reason to expect another short afternoon. Instead, the 31-year-old American rallied past second seed Beatriz Haddad Maia, a former top-10 player, 7-5, 7-5, at a WTA 125 event.
Vickery trailed 4-1 in the opening set and was broken in the second before turning the match around. She said she walked on aware of her opponent’s slump but conscious of her own.
“When I walked onto the court against Bia, I knew she wasn’t in her best form, but I also have struggled with a lot of injuries over the past year, and I have not been in my best form,” Vickery said.
The turnaround, she said, began on a changeover.
“When I went down 4-1, I sat on the changeover, kind of went over to my towel and told myself there may be a moment where the doubt and lack of match confidence comes in on her end,” she said. “Try to keep it close, and let’s just see what happens.”
She added, “I also was very determined to get a win. Some of my last few tournaments have not gone well injury-wise.”
The result handed Haddad Maia her seventh consecutive defeat. Vickery declined to credit the win solely to her opponent’s form.
“Bia is an amazing player and champion, so I knew I would have to fight every point whether she was in her best form or not,” she said. “Maybe she wasn’t, but I’m proud of myself for fighting.”
The win capped a long road for a player who grew up, as she put it, “a normal girl with immigrant parents” in Miramar, Florida. Vickery has said her grandmother bought her first racket at a dollar store when she was 6. She has since earned more than $2 million on tour and has been ranked inside the top 200 for 12 years.
“When I was a kid, I never imagined making it as far as I have in tennis,” she said. “I always knew I wanted to play professionally, but my family never had the money or resources to give me the best chance at that, so I knew I had to be one of the best growing up.”
“I’ve overcome a lot of adversity, and younger me would be so proud of all I accomplished in my career as just a normal girl with immigrant parents growing up in Miramar, Florida,” she added.
Vickery has also spoken candidly about the economics of professional tennis, arguing that career prize money can be misleading.
“Yes, tennis is one of the most expensive sports in the world,” she said. “I’ve been fortunate to have been ranked inside the top 200 for the last 12 years of my career, which has helped me tremendously financially, but outside of that, players don’t make any money to survive.”
“Most players are breaking even or losing money every week that they travel,” she said. “Tennis is the only sport where the top 500 players in the world aren’t paid enough to live, unless you’re making a splash in bigger events. Prize money in 125Ks is nothing compared to what you spend.”
She said she no longer dwells on tournament checks.
“I don’t even focus on the income I make at tennis tournaments much anymore, because unless it’s a slam, it’s not going to progress me financially much,” she said. “Luckily, I have plenty of off-court investments and now OnlyFans, where I don’t have to play tennis anymore if I don’t want to. Now I play for myself and for the love of the game without thinking about anything else.”
Those other ventures include South Florida real estate and a subscription platform she launched last year, which she said followed an unexpected windfall.
“I started OnlyFans last year after I was invited to take part in an OFTV pickleball show, which I ended up winning and making $20,000,” she said. “I didn’t really think that far ahead of pursuing OnlyFans, but my platform gained a big following after the show aired.”
She disputed early reports that she turned to the platform out of necessity.
“There were a lot of misconceptions written early on, some saying I needed to do OnlyFans for survival, which is totally false,” she said. “I’ve done well for myself through tennis, and I’ve also been investing into real estate since I was 20 years old, owning a few properties around South Florida, and I have been very responsible with my money from an early age. But also, who doesn’t want to make more money?”
“I was blown away with the earning potential I had on there, and it’s been life-changing,” she said.
The decision has drawn criticism, which Vickery, who has been open about racial abuse and body-shaming directed at her online, brushed aside.
“I’ve heard things like her career is over, all she does is show her ass online and sells her body,” she said. “I guarantee you if others had the potential to make what I’m making on OnlyFans, they would jump at the opportunity.”
“I’m attractive, and I have a nice body thanks to my Caribbean genetics, so I’m gonna use it, and I don’t care what anyone has to say about it,” she added. “Most people are jealous and not brave enough to make a step into different avenues like I am. People talk shit regardless. Now you have to pay me to talk shit.”
Vickery acknowledged the outspokenness may carry a cost.
“Being more outspoken probably may cost me deals and relationships with tennis brands,” she said. “Girls on tour and in the locker room probably talk shit about me and what I post, but honestly, I’m at the stage in my life and career where I can afford to take more risks, and I don’t care about what tennis players think. I will never see most of these people again once I retire, apart from my close friends on tour.”
She framed the platform as a source of independence.
“No tennis company or brand is going to pay me what I’m making on OnlyFans, and also OF gives me a sense of freedom and independence,” she said. “I can dress, speak, live however I want to, and I won’t be judged on the platform with so many creators that do a mix of all kinds of content.”
“I’ve done tennis, lingerie, volleyball, and pole dancing experiences that I get to have fun and post to another avenue of fans that love to see another side of pro tennis players,” she said. “A lot of tennis players can come off as boring to brands, fans, etc., so I think it’s nice when they can see other sides of you.”
“Of course, you have to be serious and focused on your career, but social media is such a big part of today’s society, and it can pay you what tennis won’t, as I’ve already proven in one year on the platform,” she added.
As for a matchup still on her list, Vickery pointed to one of her childhood idols.
“An active player I would have loved to play against is Venus Williams,” she said. “She was one of my idols growing up, and seeing her still out competing is really inspiring to all of us on tour.”
