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Sabalenka interrupts US Open match against Rakhimova over cannabis smell

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Reuters. (2026, September 4). Sabalenka interrupts US Open match against Rakhimova over cannabis smell. Al Jazeera. https://www.aljazeera.com/sports/2026/9/4/sabalenka-interrupts-us-open-match-against-rakhimova-over-cannabis-smell?traffic_source=rss

Dated when The Aporia collected the article, usually within hours of publication. Check the original for its exact date and byline.

Al Jazeera · collected 2026-09-04 · by Reuters

Quick Summary

Aryna Sabalenka interrupted her US Open third-round match against Kamilla Rakhimova on Friday to report a strong smell of cannabis drifting onto the court from outside the Louis Armstrong Stadium. The top seed, who was leading 3-0 in the set, told umpire Eva Asderaki-Moore that someone was smoking weed and asked for the odor to be kept away from the court. Sabalenka said she had smelled cannabis before during the tournament but never so strongly during a match, attributing it to the wind carrying the smell into the stadium. The incident highlights a recurring issue at Flushing Meadows, where recreational cannabis is legal in New York and smoke can drift onto the courts from the surrounding park.
Written by AI on 2026-09-04, from this article's own text only (the story summary below draws on all the coverage).

AI analysis

Story summary

Aryna Sabalenka, the world number one tennis player from Belarus, interrupted her match against Kamilla Rakhimova of Uzbekistan at the US Open on Friday due to a strong smell of cannabis in the air. During the second service game, Sabalenka told umpire Eva Asderaki-Moore, "Someone is smoking weed. Do you mind? Because it's so strong." Despite the distraction, Sabalenka went on to win the match 6-3, 6-4. She later stated that she was not objecting to anyone enjoying themselves, but asked for the smoking to be kept away from the court. The smell of cannabis has become a common issue at Flushing Meadows, where smoking is not permitted inside the grounds.

Written for “Sabalenka US Open Disruption” on 2026-11-01, grounded in this article and the 3 other(s) covering the same event.

Story

📰 Sabalenka US Open Disruption
Sports · 4 article(s) covering the same event. Compare every outlet's account →

Compared with similar articles

This article reads unscored and hedges 0% of its claims. Each row says how that neighbour differs.
The Sydney Morning Herald
⚖️ Leans right Hedges 1 of 21 claims Outlet record 61/100
ABC News (AU)
Hedges 1 of 33 claims Outlet record 68/100
Fox News
⚖️ Leans left Hedges 2 of 15 claims Outlet record 69/100
Al Jazeera
Hedges 1 of 14 claims Outlet record 60/100
“Article A describes a match between Sabalenka and Rakhimova, while Article B describes a match between Sabalenka and Townsend”
How this article was measured signals, leaning charts, publisher record, byline, topics and claims

Signals How these are calculated →

Claims extracted
16
sentences that state something as happening or true
Uncertain
0%
0 of 16 hedged ("reportedly", "may", "according to")
Leaning
withheld
no quote in the article backed the model's score
Publisher signals
60/100
Al Jazeera's corrections and hedging, across everything collected from it. Not a measure of accuracy.
Outlets on this story
4
Sports
Same framing elsewhere
1
articles that frame the event the way this one does
Analyzed 2026-09-04 · how these are computed

How this is being covered How these are calculated →

Article leaning vs. publisher reliability
Source leaning vs. consistency

Publisher

Al Jazeera · 4625 article(s) · 2 correction(s) detected
Running correction rate · 2 correction(s)

Who wrote this

Reuters
812 article(s) here · 1 carrying a prediction
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Wire or desk byline, not an individual reporter.
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Topics

4FIFA UEFA US Open Uzbekistan World Cup

Subjects

Sabalenka PERSON · 5× 4Deadpool ORG · 1× 4FIFA ORG · 1× Aryna Sabalenka PERSON · 1× Hugh Jackman PERSON · 1× Infantino NORP · 1× Kamilla Rakhimova PERSON · 1× Messi PERSON · 1× UEFA ORG · 1× Uzbekistan GPE · 1×

Narrative

Sabalenka, who had made a fast start to go 3-0 ahead before securing a straight-sets win against Uzbekistan’s Kamilla Rakhimova, raised the issue during her second service game on Friday, pointing out the smell before play resumed. Recommended Stories list of 4 items- list 1 of 4The number 10 shirt must not retire with Messi - list 2 of 4FIFA accuses UEFA of ‘smear campaign’ over Infantino, World Cup plan - list 3 of 4Deadpool-Wolverine derby in the offing as Hugh Jackman targets Norwich City - list 4 of 4What now for Benzema, Pogba, Sancho and Sterling?
framing: assertive · carried by 1 article(s) · first seen 2026-09-04
🔮 “Would you mind to… because it’s so strong.”
2026-09-04 · Al Jazeera
Sabalenka interrupts US Open match against Rakhimova over cannabis smell · assertive framing

Claims (16 extracted, 0 hedged)

World number one Aryna Sabalenka had an unusual interruption during her US Open third-round match, stopping play to alert the umpire to a strong smell of cannabis drifting onto the Louis Armstrong Stadium court. asserted
Sabalenka → have → court
Sabalenka, who had made a fast start to go 3-0 ahead before securing a straight-sets win against Uzbekistan’s Kamilla Rakhimova, raised the issue during her second service game on Friday, pointing out the smell before play resumed. Recommended Stories list of 4 items- list 1 of 4The number 10 shirt must not retire with Messi - list 2 of 4FIFA accuses UEFA of ‘smear campaign’ over Infantino, World Cup plan - list 3 of 4Deadpool-Wolverine derby in the offing as Hugh Jackman targets Norwich City - list 4 of 4What now for Benzema, Pogba, Sancho and Sterling? asserted
Jackman → make → Benzema
The stars unable to shine asserted
stars → shine → ?
“Someone is smoking weed,” top seed Sabalenka told umpire Eva Asderaki-Moore as she was serving 30-0 up. asserted
she → smoke → Moore
“Would you mind to… because it’s so strong.” asserted
it → mind → ?
Sabalenka later told reporters she was not objecting to anyone enjoying themselves, but asked for the smoking to be kept away from the court. asserted
smoking → tell → court
“I was like, Guys, you can do whatever, you can smoke whatever, you can relax as much as you can, but please to not do it around the tennis courts,” a smiling Sabalenka said. asserted
you → do → courts
“It’s a bit tricky to handle that smell while you’re trying to compete at your best.” asserted
you → ’ → best
The odour of cannabis has become a familiar — if unwelcome — feature at Flushing Meadows, with players complaining about the distraction in the past. asserted
players → become → past
While smoking is not permitted inside the grounds, recreational cannabis is legal for adults 21 and older in New York, and smoke from people in the surrounding Flushing Meadows-Corona Park can drift into the tennis complex and onto the courts. asserted
smoke → permit → courts
Sabalenka said she had smelled cannabis before during the tournament but never so strongly during a match, with Friday’s wind apparently carrying the odour into the stadium. asserted
wind → say → stadium
Also, because it was a bit windy,” she said. asserted
she → say → ?
“I don’t know if it was coming from the crowd or was from the outside because the wind blows it into the stadium. asserted
wind → know → stadium
“I just hope they are a bit more aware of that stuff,” she added, before laughing when the questions returned to the subject. asserted
questions → hope → subject
I think there is nothing else to say about weed. asserted
I → think → weed
I’m just asking people not to smoke it next to the tennis court.” asserted
I → ask → court
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