11 hours ago
38
Aryna Sabalenka was forced to stop her third-round match against Kamila Rakhimova to complain about someone apparently smoking weed inside the US Open's Louis Armstrong Stadium.
The court is the second-largest of the tournament's showcourts, but despite the venerable setting, Sabalenka was so disturbed by the smell of what she believed to be marijuana that while serving in the third game, she called for umpire Eva Asderaki-Moore's attention after first speaking to her team.
'Someone is smoking weed,' she said as she paused play at 30-0 up to speak Asderaki-Moore. 'Would you mind to (tell them to deal with it) because it's so strong.'
The world No1, who went on to win in straight sets, had been serving at the south end of the stadium, close to where her team were seated in the players' box.
The chair umpire quickly radioed for assistance, making a mysterious snipping signal at her colleagues. Members of US Open staff then headed into the crowd in a bid to find the source of the smell.
The smell of cannabis is not unexpected around the grounds of the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center, due to its position inside Flushing Meadows Corona Park, where weed can be smoked legally by those relaxing in the sunshine.
Aryna Sabalenka alleged that a spectator was smoking weed during her US Open match
It is however forbidden, along with all forms of smoking, inside the tournament. The US Open has been contacted for comment.
During qualifying and ahead of the start of the tournament, a number of British players noted the unique smell of the grounds, with Katie Boulter particularly disapproving of how the stink hung around Court 17 - referred to in the Danish media as 'hash court' for how strongly the smell lingers in the air.
‘I have experienced it,’ Boulter, who was knocked out on Wednesday by Karolina Muchova, shared. ‘You got down to the practice courts and down in the park courts, you do smell it a lot.
‘I’m not a huge fan of it. I know a lot of players have complained on specific courts. I’ve played on (Court 17) before and I did smell it during my match. It’s something that I wouldn’t like to smell in the middle of my match.’
In response, the USTA shared the following statement: 'While we can’t control what takes place off the grounds of the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center, we continue to be vigilant as we maintain this facility as a smoke-free environment.
'This includes enforcement by our security and guest services teams when they are made aware of any individual that may be smoking, making them aware that although it may be legal in New York, that smoking is not permitted on parks property, including the tennis center.
'We constantly work with the NYPD and Parks Department, and we believe this has helped to decrease smoking near our fenceline.'
Sabalenka brushed aside world No 92 Rakhimova to continue her straight-sets march
Sabalenka brushed aside world No 92 Rakhimova to continue her straight-sets march towards what she hopes is a third-consecutive US Open title.
And of the earlier incident, she later said with a smile: ‘I was like guys, you can do whatever, you can smoke whatever, you can relax however you want, but please try not to do it during a tennis match. It’s a bit tricky to handle the smell while you’re trying to compete at your best.
‘But come on guys, I think there is nothing more to say about weed. I’m just asking people not to smoke it next to the tennis court,’ she continued, only to add of her game: ‘Maybe it’s too fast for them, and they want to slow down!’
Despite the early distraction, Sabalenka was able to reset with the minimum fuss and continue to scythe through the opening set.
The second was another matter. Almost double the length of the opener, Rakhimova had grown into the match and tested Sabalenka from the off as she pushed her to deuce four times in her first service game.
Only a strong serving performance, with 10 aces struck across the match, kept her opponent from hunting down a crucial break.
Although joking with the press pack about how ‘high’ being in New York made her feel on Friday, Sabalenka has been a trickier subject after her matches in New York. Wound tight after a challenging summer that has seen her normally ultra-consistence form take a nosedive, her attitude has read as defensive.
In the second set, this mode switched to visible frustration. The world No1 shouldn’t have looked as frustrated as she did as Rakhimova continued to deny her opportunities to break her serve - the win was almost inevitable.
There is a growing sense however, that Sabalenka wants not just to keep going in the tournament, but to wrench back the feeling of dread her opponents would normally sense when seeing her in their section of the draw. Amid a summer of toothlessness as her level has dropped, that was not assured coming into New York.
Slowly but surely, however, she is clawing this back.
