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NEW YORK – Arthur Ashe Stadium has all the grandeur and tradition fit to host Roger Federer and Serena Williams in opening-round night matches of the U.S. Open while celebrities such as Hugh Jackman look on. But if you want to see Nick Kyrgios hit a ‘tweener through his legs while a set down, head next door.

There stands the new-look Louis Armstrong Stadium, the latest addition to Billie Jean King National Tennis Center and the capstone of the U.S. Tennis Association’s five-year, $600 million transformation of the place. Fans with night-session tickets, which must be purchased separately, now have their choice of court for the first time: stunning, cavernous, classic Ashe, or the $200 million Armstrong, which managed to retain much of its original intimacy while seating 14,000 and adding a retractable roof.

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Through the tournament’s first two nights, Louis Armstrong Stadium also staked its claim as host for some of die-hard fans’ favorite players — and the sport’s most controversial.

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While five-time champion Federer rolled to a three-set victory Tuesday night on the main stage, Kyrgios was swearing and hitting trick shots through a four-set victory punctuated with throaty cheers from Australian fans. As 2017 finalist Madison Keys defeated Pauline Parmentier following the Federer match, Armstrong Stadium served up one of the most compelling matchups of the day: Maria Sharapova beat Patty Schnyder, the former world No. 7 whose Grand Slam career now spans more than two decades, 6-2, 7-6 (7-6), in the Swiss veteran’s first main-draw match of a Grand Slam in seven years.

The previous day featured past U.S. Open champions Juan Martin del Potro, Andy Murray and Sloane Stephens; reigning French Open champion Simona Halep; and Victoria Azarenka.

“For a number two court at a Grand Slam, it was absolutely perfect,” fourth-seeded Alexander Zverev, who also played in Armstrong Stadium, said Tuesday.

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Armstrong Stadium’s calling card was its intimacy – fans felt like they were sitting on top of the action. The new version, with a railing that borders the lower-seating area and the structure that gives the stadium a bit of a lid even when the roof is open, offers a similar feel on a bigger scale. Fans mill about on the concourse during games and, unlike at Arthur Ashe Stadium, stand along the railing peering over the court without being told to take their seats.

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“It kind of felt like an indoor court, almost,” Kyrgios said after his 7-5, 2-6, 6-4, 6-2 win over Radu Albot. “It was pretty loud in there.”

The design that gives Armstrong Stadium its cozy feel also means sound — from planes flying overhead to the subway train that rattles just past the court to fans walking around — echoes inside the structure.

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For Stephens, who played in the afternoon in front of a smaller crowd than what the night session boasted, the noise was distracting.

“There was a lot going on, like I said, between the airplanes and the subway behind the court, the concessions being in the lower bowl and people walking in the games at, like, 2-all, 3-all,” Stephens said. “There’s just a lot going on.”

Aside from the noise, Armstrong Stadium doesn’t have an air conditioning system like Arthur Ashe Stadium does; the structure’s architects are calling it the first roofed “naturally ventilated system.”

Even when the roof is open, there is little airflow and on hot days the stadium is stuffy — but the top does provide welcome shade for much of the seating area.

During the night sessions when the air is cooler and the fans are rowdier, Armstrong buzzes with the energy players say they love about New York. Impassioned fans hollered, clapped and encouraged Kyrgios while others booed. The enthusiastic applause that greeted Sharapova, one year after her return to the U.S. Open following a drug suspension, seemed amplified.

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“The atmosphere was good; I could hear every boo as well,” Kyrgios quipped with a smile. “Yeah, it was very good they’re making those courts echo the boos; I like it a lot. It was a lot of fun.”

The new stadium went through its share of opening-day glitches Monday, when one of two escalators stopped working several times and several television monitors along the concourse showed blank screens. But even with its noisy atmosphere and growing pains, the extra dose of energy and occasional peek into the sport’s quirkier offerings it provided was a welcome addition.

“There’s a little bit more noise than maybe some of the other stadiums that I’ve played at. But I don’t know, it’s kind of part of the U.S. Open,” Sharapova said. “You can’t really shy away from noise if you want to be a champion in New York City, right? I think you have to embrace it.”

More from the U.S. Open:

Simona Halep makes history as the first top seed to lose in first round

Djokovic, Federer, Nadal, Murray: At the U.S. Open, the gang’s all here

Scratch that: Serena Williams downplays French Open catsuit ban

Serena Williams’s path opens up after Halep upset

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