Given the US Open is played during hurricane season, it’s no surprise that weather conditions have caused mayhem to the tournament.USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center lies in Flushing Meadows, a public park located in the borough of Queens, New York City.The US Open faced a disruptive start in 2021GettyWeather from Hurricane Ida caused problems across the entire tennis centreAFPSituated on the east coast of the United States, the ‘Big Apple’ is used to the devastation and destruction that Mother Nature can deliver.Hurricane Sandy in particular caused 53 deaths and an estimated $32billion worth of damage across New York state in October 2012.Just under a decade later, the city was struck by the category four Hurricane Ida right when the 2021 US Open got underway.The National Weather Service issued a flash flood emergency warning for the first time ever in New York City amid torrential rain.Much of the subway system was closed due to flooding alongside the city’s rail network, causing chaos for thousands of tennis fans.With the Arthur Ashe and Louis Armstrong stadiums boasting roofs, fans with tickets would have sought shelter inside from the weather.But for the latter venue, the structure of the roof was unable to keep spectators dry and even forced one match to be finished elsewhere.Diego Schwartzman and Kevin Anderson met in the second round on the Wednesday of the first week, and play started at around 7:30pm.At 5-5 in the first set, play was paused whilst fans put up umbrellas as a result of rain flying between gaps in the roof.The court was dried by air blowers but with the loud noise of rain lashing on top of the stadium, there was very little sign of weakening.Despite there being a roof, rain was leaking into the stadium in wild scenesGettyBoth players were unhappy with the playing conditionsGettyAnd in the early stages of the second set, the match was suspended.Officials then decided that Schwartzman and Anderson would leave the Louis Armstrong Stadium to finish their match.They moved to the iconic Arthur Ashe Stadium and resumed play once Stefanos Tsitsipas had beaten Adrian Mannarino in four sets.Rain was also heard pounding on the venue’s roof, but it was able to keep it at bay and protect the court from dampness.Finally, once Wednesday night had turned into the early hours of Thursday morning, Schwartzman beat Anderson 7-6 [7-4] 6-3 6-4.After the long wait to confirm his place in the third round, he said: “I was ready to play and I wanted to finish today, not finish tomorrow.After almost six hours of play, Schwartzman won the disrupted matchGetty“You never know what can happen. “I was trying to push… To play tonight. I am very happy and I was able to play my best tennis in the last two sets.“He served better on Arthur Ashe, but I was able to take my opportunities and my second serve held up.”His fellow Arthur Ashe victor Tsitsipas also said: “I could hear [the rain]. “At first I thought it was the crowd, just people talking on the back seats. I just realised it was not the crowd, it was the rain. “Just a lot of noise coming from up there… I do have a bed here, so I might have a sleepover here tonight.”View Tweet: https://t.co/ezVe9mSfepLouis Armstrong StadiumThe Louis Armstrong Stadium reportedly cost $200m and opened in 2018 before the US Open, replacing its former namesake venue.John and Patrick McEnroe faced James Blake and Michael Chang in an exhibition match to help welcome the new-look arena.With a capacity of 14,053, it became the first ever naturally ventilated retractable roof tennis venue, as per consulting firm WSP Global.Matthew Payne, who was the WSP project manager for the building of the roof, explained the need for an outdoor feel to the stadium.“Fundamentally, the US Open is an outdoor tournament, so the USTA wanted to explore ways they could provide rain protection to allow play to continue, but for the tournament to retain its outdoor feel. “Once you close a stadium roof, you are limiting the amount of airflow into the stadium and there is a risk of heat building up and you get that stuffy feeling.The Louis Armstrong Stadium was once an open air arenaGetty“With the new Louis Armstrong Stadium, we were focused on making sure that wouldn’t happen.”However, his expectations for the roof in 2018 were far from reality in 2021 during Hurricane Ida’s visit to the US Open.“Think of the roof as having an effect similar to standing underneath an umbrella during a rain shower,” he said.“It protects the spectators from the rain, but you are still aware that it is raining.”Both the Louis Armstrong and Arthur Ashe stadiums have returned to action for the 2025 US Open.Tournament staff will hope the action won’t face any disruption from severe weather this year, although hurricane season is in full swing.It now has a game-changing roof, despite the carnage in 2021Getty