British tennis star Katie Boulter has complained about the smell of cannabis during her preparations for the US Open, saying it distracts her during matches. The world number 60 is set to open her campaign in New York against Carol Suh Lee on Sunday.
Boulter's complaint
"I'm not a huge fan of it," said Boulter. "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."
Other players affected
Boulter is far from the only star to have pointed out the issue. Speaking earlier this week, Fran Jones said: "Last year I made a joke about that, in my first round, and I said to the guy, 'is this normal?' Because I was on 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!'"
Meanwhile, Harriet Dart has also pointed to the issue. "I mean it's 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."
Organisers' response
Smoking on the grounds of Flushing Meadows is currently banned and organisers, The United States Tennis Association, says it joins forces with local police and parks department to reduce smoking on the site boundary. It said: "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."
Nick Kyrgios previously complained that a fan was triggering his asthma by smoking courtside, while Greece's Maria Sakkari also made the issue known to the umpire midway through a set just a year later. Novak Djokovic also noted the issue last year. He said: "You can really smell the smell, it's not like you can miss it. Some people are more disturbed than others. I'm not a fan of the smell either, it stinks. But it's allowed here and you have to accept it. You can feel it everywhere, from the training grounds to the courts where we play our matches. That's how it is."
