Sabalenka pauses US Open match over strong cannabis smell, cruises to fourth round
Aryna Sabalenka briefly stopped play during her US Open third-round match to flag a strong cannabis odour before going on to win comfortably and reach the fourth round.
World number one Aryna Sabalenka briefly halted her third-round US Open match against Uzbekistan's Kamilla Rakhimova to complain about a strong smell of cannabis on court. After going 3-0 up in the first set, Sabalenka told umpire Eva Asderaki-Moore that someone nearby was smoking weed and asked her to intervene because the smell was so strong.
The umpire radioed an official and gestured toward someone behind her indicating smoking, after which play resumed without further disruption.
Comfortable win
Two-time defending champion Sabalenka went on to win 6-3, 6-4 on Louis Armstrong Stadium, keeping alive her pursuit of a fifth Grand Slam singles title. She was dominant from the outset, dropping just four points on her own serve in the opening set. Rakhimova fought back in the second set, but Sabalenka secured a decisive break to lead 5-4 before closing out the match. She finished with 10 aces to Rakhimova's two and faced no break points.
The win was Sabalenka's 16th consecutive victory at Flushing Meadows, as she chases becoming the first woman since Serena Williams in 2012-2014 to win three straight US Open titles.
Sabalenka is not the only player to have raised concerns about cannabis smell at this year's tournament - Britain's Katie Boulter, Harriet Dart and Francesca Jones have all previously noted it, while players such as Novak Djokovic and Alexander Zverev complained about the same issue in past years. Smoking is banned on the Flushing Meadows grounds, but cannabis odour occasionally drifts onto the courts from the neighbouring Corona Park, where it is legal for adults 21 and over to smoke it in New York. Sabalenka will next face either American Taylor Townsend or Russia's 15th seed Diana Shnaider.
