American tennis star Sachia Vickery’s US Open hopes came to a crushing end Thursday, just one day after she went viral for her racy off-court endeavors.
The 30-year-old, who sent shockwaves through the tennis world on Wednesday after she opened up on her OnlyFans career, came up against Ella Seidel in the second round of qualifying for the final Grand Slam of the year.
However, Vickery, ranked world No 559, failed to secure her place in the main draw at Flushing Meadows after being beaten by the German in straight sets in just over an hour.
World No. 105 Seidel, who scored the first Top 20 victory of her career in an upset victory over American Emma Navarro in Cincinnati last week, made quick work of the matchup, cruising through the first set 6-1.
Vickery attempted to fight back in the second but ultimately couldn’t recover from having her serve broken in the first game, losing 6-1, 6-2, to the 20-year-old.
She had started her campaign by easily cruising past Anastasiya Soboleva in the first qualification round to set up the clash against Seidel. But her younger opponent is one of the most exciting rising stars to have burst onto the scene this year.
Despite a first-round exit at Wimbledon, Seidel made it to the fourth round of the Cincinnati Open before brushing aside Kathinka von Deichmann 6-3, 6-2 in her opening qualifier in New York.
It marks the second time this year that Vickery has failed to make it through qualification at tennis’s Grand Slams.
She also failed to qualify for the Australian Open in January, stumbling in the third round of qualifying, and skipped Roland Garros and Wimbledon all together.
Vickery, whose father Rawle is a former soccer player and brother Dominque Mitchell played football at South Carolina State, turned professional in 2011 after training with USTA and Mouratoglou Academy in France.
But her career peaked back in 2018, when she managed a career-high ranking of World No 73.
Now, the Florida native has slumped to No 559, without a single victory to her name.
Before this week, Vickery hadn’t played a WTA match since February, however she has still managed to keep herself with other more lucrative – and scandalous – ventures.
Vickery caused a stir earlier this week when it emerged that she has carved out a successful side career, selling steamy photos of herself and charging men to date her.
The athlete, who has ‘God First’ written in her Instagram bio, joined adult content side OnlyFans earlier this year, breaking the news to her stunned fans in a bombshell update on her Instagram.
Vickery has banked just over $2million throughout her 14-year career on the court. Outside of the sport, she demands a $1,000 deposit fee just to date her.
For $12.99 a month, subscribers have access to ‘the content too spicy for Instagram,’ according to Vickery’s OnlyFans bio, which also describes her as ‘your favorite pro tennis player.’
Her platform teases her ‘longest shower vid yet,’ strip teases and ‘spicier’ pictures, while also asking her fans to rate her ‘riding skills’ as she shares risque videos and saucy snaps.
‘I no longer date for free due to the behavior of men I now require a pre-date deposit send me 1,000 and we can make it happen my cashapp is $Sachiavick,’ she told her 39,4000 followers during an Instagram Q&A session earlier this week.
However, Vickery has faced harsh criticism from traditional tennis fans, who have brutally torn into her over the decision.
‘Who the f*** is going to take Sachia Vickery on a date or even pay to take her on a date when she has let dudes see her naked for less than a price of a happy meal,’ one post read.
While Vickery’s move may have sent ripples through the tennis world, she has no regrets. She previously revealed that she’s always seen herself as something of a revolutionary.
‘I’ve always pushed boundaries,’ she said on the Black Spin Global podcast earlier this year. ‘I’ve always been outspoken about racial hate I get online, bodyshaming. I’m very open about a lot of stuff.
‘I’m still playing tennis, my career is still going but I also want to do things outside of tennis. I’m starting to explore more opportunities on social media.’
Vickery isn’t the only tennis star to have joined the adult content platform, joining the likes of the sport’s bad boy Nick Kyrgios and Frenchman Alexandre Muller, the world No 38.
Ashley Harkelroad, a former world No 39, briefly joined the site in 2022, while Australian Arina Rodionova signed up earlier this year after splitting from her husband Ty Vickery, the former Australian rules footballer with whom she tied the knot in December 2015.
