Game, Set, Sniff: US Open Players Smell Cannabis During Matches

NEW YORK, NY- At the ongoing US Open, players have raised concerns about the smell of cannabis drifting onto some of the tournament’s outside courts in New York, where recreational cannabis is legal for adults aged 21 and over.

Britain’s No. 1 player Katie Boulter was among those to speak out about the issue. Boulter, ranked World No. 60, said she could smell cannabis “a lot” during her practice sessions.

“I’m not a huge fan of it,” Boulter said. “I know a lot of players have complained on some of the specific courts. I’ve played on one before, and I did smell it during my match. It’s something that I wouldn’t like to smell in the middle of my match.

“I’m trying to focus and then obviously, it takes you out of the moment, and you really don’t want to. You don’t need distractions. So yeah, I wasn’t a huge fan of it,” she added.

Other British players also spoke about the smell, with Fran Jones and Harriet Dart joining the discussion.

“Last year I made a joke about that, in my first round, and I said to the guy, ‘Is this normal?’” Jones said. “Because I was in the stadium, and it’s next to the park. He’s like, ‘Yeah.’ And I was like: ‘Well, no wonder I’m playing pretty well.’ This year I’ll be like ‘no, lock in, lock in!’”

Dart said, “I mean its New York. It’s New York. I feel like everywhere you walk around, it’s everywhere, no? It is what it is. Same for everyone,” she said.

Meanwhile, the United States Tennis Association (USTA), which organizes the US Open, said it remains “vigilant” about the issue.

“While we can’t control what takes place off the grounds of the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center, we continue to be vigilant as we maintain this,” the USTA said in a statement.

This is not the first year in which players have raised concerns about cannabis smoke around the tournament. Last year, World No. 20 Casper Ruud said the smell was the “worst thing” about New York. In 2022, Australian player Nick Kyrgios complained that his asthma was triggered by a fan smoking courtside, while Greek tennis star Maria Sakkari complained during the 2023 US Open about smelling cannabis during her match. (IANS)