Players at the US Open in New York say marijuana smoke is becoming an unexpected distraction/ Photo by Dave Dellinger/USTA
The 2026 US Open is set to begin on Sunday, but as the world's best players prepare for the year's final Grand Slam, some competitors are dealing with an unexpected distraction around Flushing Meadows: the smell of cannabis drifting in from a nearby park. British players Katie Boulter, Fran Jones and Harriet Dart have all noticed the smell around the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center, with Boulter saying it can affect her concentration during practice and matches. The tournament begins on Aug. 30, with Carlos Alcaraz returning to individual competition for the first time since suffering a wrist injury at the Barcelona Open in April. World No. 1 Jannik Sinner will miss the event with a knee injury, while Novak Djokovic will pursue a record 25th Grand Slam title. Rising star Alex Eala is also expected to receive strong support from New York fans, while Aryna Sabalenka will look to rediscover her best form.
Boulter: ‘You don't need distractions’
Cannabis is legal for adults aged 21 and over in New York, although smoking is not permitted on the grounds of the tennis center. However, the venue sits beside Corona Park, and the smell can carry across to some practice and outside courts. Boulter, Britain's No. 1 and ranked 60th in the world, said she has encountered it both while practising and during matches. “Yeah, I have experienced it. You go down to the practice courts and down in the park courts, you do smell it a lot,” Boulter said. “But yeah, I'm not a huge fan of it. 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.”
Jones remembers the smell from last year's US Open
Boulter is not the only British player to have noticed it. Fran Jones, Britain's No. 3, recalled encountering the smell during her first-round match at last year's tournament and said she initially wondered whether it was simply part of playing so close to the park. “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,” Jones said. “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!'” Jones, who qualified for this year's tournament, begins her campaign against Poland's Magda Linette on Monday. Harriet Dart, who also came through qualifying, took a more typically New York approach to the situation. “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,” Dart said. Dart will face American Peyton Stearns in the first round.
It has been an issue at the US Open before
The smell of cannabis has become a recurring talking point at Flushing Meadows, with players from outside Britain raising similar concerns in previous editions. In 2022, Australian doubles player Nick Kyrgios complained that a spectator smoking courtside was affecting his asthma, prompting the umpire to ask fans to refrain from smoking. A year later, Greece's Maria Sakkari pointed out the smell to the umpire during a match. She later clarified that it was not an excuse for her defeat. Novak Djokovic and Alexander Zverev have also previously noticed the smell around the tournament.
Join conversation
Share your thoughts in the comments
Be respectful · TOI community guidelines
The United States Tennis Association, which organises the US Open, has acknowledged the difficulty of dealing with activity taking place beyond the tournament grounds. “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. The organisation has said it works with local police and the parks department to address smoking around the boundary of the site. With the 2026 US Open getting under way on Sunday, the cannabis smell is likely to remain a background issue at a tournament already filled with major storylines. Alcaraz will return to action, Sinner will be absent, Djokovic will chase another historic title, Eala will look to make the most of strong local support and Sabalenka will aim to regain her winning form. Boulter will open against American wildcard Carol Young Suh Lee, while Jones and Dart begin their campaigns against Linette and Stearns respectively.
End of Article
