British fig 1 Katie Boulter has complained that the odor of cannabis is putting her disconnected her crippled astatine the US Open.
On Sunday, the last large of the play begins astatine Flushing Meadows successful New York, wherever cannabis is ineligible for adults aged 21 and over.
Though smoking is not permitted connected site, the odor of cannabis wafts connected to tribunal from adjacent Corona Park and has bothered a fig of players successful erstwhile years, including Novak Djokovic and Alexander Zverev.
Boulter, who is preparing to look American wildcard Carol Young Suh Lee successful the archetypal round, says it is imaginable to odor cannabis "a lot" connected the signifier courts.
"I'm not a immense instrumentality of it," said Boulter, the satellite fig 60. "I cognize a batch of players person complained connected immoderate of the circumstantial courts. I've played connected 1 earlier and I did odor it during my match.
"It's thing that I wouldn't similar to odor successful the mediate of my match. I'm trying to absorption and past obviously, it takes you retired of the infinitesimal and you truly don't privation to.
"You don't request distractions. So yeah, I wasn't a immense instrumentality of it."
The odor of cannabis has been a persistent contented astatine the US Open.
In 2022, Australian Open doubles champion Nick Kyrgios complained that a instrumentality was triggering his asthma by smoking courtside, prompting the umpire to inquire supporters to refrain.
Greece's Maria Sakkari pointed the odor retired to an umpire midway done a acceptable successful 2023, aboriginal clarifying that it wasn't an excuse for her defeat.
The United States Tennis Association, which organises the event, says it works with the section constabulary and parks section to trim smoking connected the tract boundary.
It said: "While we can't power what takes spot disconnected the grounds of the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center, we proceed to beryllium vigilant arsenic we support this."
Britain's Fran Jones and Harriet Dart, who both qualified connected Friday, person besides noticed the smell.
"Last twelvemonth I made a gag astir that, successful my archetypal round, and I said to the guy, 'is this normal?'" said Jones, whose tourney begins against Poland's Magda Linette connected Monday.
"Because I was connected the stadium, and it's adjacent to the park. He's like, 'yeah". and I was like: 'Well, nary wonderment I'm playing beauteous well.'
"This twelvemonth I'll beryllium similar 'no, fastener in, fastener in!'"
After beating British compatriot Heather Watson successful qualifying to acceptable up a first-round lucifer against the United States' Peyton Stearns, Dart said: "I mean it's New York. It's New York.
"I consciousness similar everyplace you locomotion around, it's everywhere, no?
"It is what it is. Same for everyone."
English (US)·