Aryna Sabalenka halts US Open match to complain about marijuana smell

During the third game of her contest with Kamila Rakhimova, which the the No 1 seed ultimately won 6-3 6-4, Sabalenka spoke to the chair umpire and said, "Someone is smoking weed."

The 28-year-old was 30-0 up and was serving at the south end of the stadium, which is the second-biggest behind Arthur Ashe at Flushing Meadows.

The defending US Open champion then said to the official, "Would you mind to [tell them to deal with it] because it's so strong?"

The umpire quickly radioed for assistance, prompting US Open staff to head into the crowd to try and find the smell's source.

Sabalenka is not the only player to complain about these odours wafting around the grounds this week. Adrian Mannarino was not best pleased with what he thought was a lack of tennis etiquette from some in the crowd and at Flushing Meadows - which has seen a rise in paid influencers attend the event.

The 38-year-old Frenchman said after his second-round defeat to Alexander Bublik, "Now people are allowed to move around in the crowd during points. Before, they were not allowed in the court except during changeovers. Now they come in whenever they feel like it; they move around and talk.

"The tournament puts up with it, and I don't know if it's the best thing for tennis in general. There's a smell of marijuana on the court, noise everywhere; the truth is it's turning into a bit of a zoo. The playing conditions are really peculiar."

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