Aryna Sabalenka disturbed by weed during US Open match: ‘It’s so strong’

· Yahoo Sports

Credit: REUTERS/Eduardo Munoz

World No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka cruised to a straight set victory over Kamilla Rakhimova to reach the Round of 16 at the 2026 US Open on Friday. Well, there was one hiccup for the reigning back-to-back US Open champion.

Early in the first set, Sabalenka walked over to the chair umpire. The broadcast captured her saying, “Someone is smoking weed. Do you mind? Because it’s so strong.”

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The weed metaphorically wafted into Sabalenka’s post-match press conference, as questions about it dominated her 10-minute media availability.

“I was like, guys, you can do whatever,” Sabalenka, a four-time Grand Slam champion, said through laughter. “You can smoke whatever. You can relax as much as you can, but please do not do it around the tennis courts. It’s a bit tricky to handle that smell while you’re trying to compete at your best.”

A few questions later, a different reporter asked Sabalenka for her immediate reaction when she smelled weed. Again, she laughed, and said, “Come on, guys. I think there is nothing else to say about weed. I’m just asking people not to smoke it next to the tennis court.”

Not deterred in the slightest, the same reporter asked whether Friday marked Sabalenka’s first whiff of weed while playing at the US Open. “That strong? Yeah,” she said. “Also because it was a bit windy. I don’t know if it was coming from the crowd or the outside because wind blows it into the stadium. I just hope they’re gonna be a bit more aware of that stuff.”

Eventually, the press did move on to tennis-centric talk, but Sabalenka hilariously misunderstood one question as another one about marijuana.

“How much of a high are you on here compared to the other majors?” Craig Gabriel asked.

Sabalenka, visibly perplexed, asked him to repeat the question, which he did. “A high? The level?” Sabalenka asked. “Now, I can only hear the weird stuff! If they’re gonna keep smoking, I might get high.”

After a fit of laughter in the room, Sabalenka confirmed that she is typically most comfortable at the US Open and loves competing in New York City. She’ll next face Taylor Townsend on Sunday in pursuit of a historic US Open three-peat.

In the meantime, read through a sample of sports media reactions to Sabalenka’s Weedgate.

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