NEW YORK — World No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka was briefly forced to deal with an unusual distraction during her third-round match at the 2026 US Open after complaining to the chair umpire about a strong marijuana smell drifting into Louis Armstrong Stadium.
The two-time defending champion was facing Uzbekistan’s Kamilla Rakhimova on Friday when she suddenly stopped play during the opening set and alerted umpire Eva Asderaki-Moore to the odor.
“Someone is smoking weed,” Sabalenka told the umpire, asking officials to address the situation because the smell was particularly strong.
The interruption came after Sabalenka had already raced into a 3-0 lead. She had tossed the ball to serve but let it fall, appearing distracted before approaching the chair to raise the issue.
Sabalenka: The smell was difficult to ignore
After the match, Sabalenka explained that the odor was strong enough to interfere with her concentration.
She said she had never experienced the smell at that intensity during a match and was unsure whether it was coming from spectators inside the grounds or drifting in from outside with the wind.
“I was like, guys, you can do whatever, you can smoke whatever, you can relax as much as you can, but please, to not do it around the tennis courts,” Sabalenka said.
She added that dealing with the smell while trying to perform at the highest level was difficult.
The unusual incident quickly became one of the talking points of Day 6 at Flushing Meadows, with international outlets including Reuters, ESPN, CNA and The Guardian reporting on the interruption.
No fan was ejected
Despite Sabalenka’s complaint, tournament officials did not identify or eject a spectator for smoking marijuana.
USTA spokesman Brendan McIntyre said officials remained vigilant about maintaining the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center as a smoke-free facility.
The situation is particularly notable because recreational marijuana is legal for adults in New York, but smoking is prohibited in New York City parks. The US Open itself also prohibits smoking and vaping within its grounds.
Flushing Meadows-Corona Park surrounds the tennis complex, meaning odors from outside can potentially drift toward the tournament grounds.
Marijuana odors have also surfaced as an issue at the US Open before, with other players previously voicing complaints about cannabis smoke during matches.
Sabalenka refuses to let the bizarre moment derail her
The interruption ultimately did little to slow down the tournament’s top seed.
Sabalenka defeated Rakhimova 6-3, 6-4, advancing to the fourth round for the fifth consecutive year at the US Open. The official tournament account noted that she struck 10 aces and did not face a break point during the match.
The victory also kept alive Sabalenka’s bid for a historic US Open three-peat.
The Belarusian is attempting to become the first woman since Serena Williams from 2012 through 2014 to win the US Open women’s singles title three years in a row.
Sabalenka has otherwise been highly efficient in New York this year. She won her first three matches in straight sets and entered the Rakhimova contest having dropped only eight games across her opening two rounds.
Next challenge: Taylor Townsend
Sabalenka now moves into the fourth round, where she will face American Taylor Townsend.
The world No. 1 acknowledged that Townsend presents a different kind of challenge, describing her as a tricky opponent who uses variety and comes forward to the net.
For Sabalenka, however, the strange marijuana-smell interruption appears to have become little more than another bizarre chapter in her title defense.
She even managed to joke about the incident afterward, suggesting that perhaps someone wanted to slow the match down because she was moving too quickly.
For now, the world No. 1 remains firmly on course for another deep run in New York — regardless of what may be drifting through the air around the court.
WWC ONE MEDIA J.M.S
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