By Janina Nuno Rios
NEW YORK, Sept 4 (Reuters) – World number one Aryna Sabalenka had an unusual interruption during her U.S. Open third-round match on Friday, stopping play to alert the umpire to a strong smell of cannabis drifting onto Louis Armstrong Stadium court.
Sabalenka, who had made a fast start to go 3-0 ahead against Uzbekistan’s Kamilla Rakhimova, raised the issue during her second service game, pointing out the smell before play resumed.
“Someone is smoking weed,” top seed Sabalenka told umpire Eva Asderaki-Moore as she was serving 30-0 up. “Would you mind to … because it’s so strong.”
The odour of cannabis has become a familiar — if unwelcome — feature at Flushing Meadows, with players complaining about the distraction in the past.
While smoking is not permitted inside the grounds, recreational cannabis is legal for adults over 21 in New York and smoke from people in the surrounding Flushing Meadows-Corona Park can drift into the tennis complex and onto the courts.
(Reporting by Janina Nuno Rios in New YorkEditing by Christian Radnedge)
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