Alexandra Eala again handed spotlight on Centre Court on Friday at Canadian Open but why as effect of World No.20 under spotlight

It seems likely that Alexandra Eala come what may will not be off Centre Court at the Canadian Open this week as she continues to be given star treatment as on paper the biggest name reach wise in women's tennis.

The audience Eala has brough to the sport from her home country of the Philippines is now very much something that the Canadian Open have cashed in on.

Her third-round match against Caty McNally will be the last match on the main court in Toronto, Friday evening, after the tie between Coco Gauff and Maria Sakkari. For the day session, it will see Elena Rybakina take on Ann Li, as well as the tie between Leylah Fernandez and Mirra Andreeva, the Roland-Garros champion.

But with ties such as Kostyuk v Swiatek being set up, there is also the school of thought from some that Eala perhaps is undeserving of this even with ther each she brings the sport from her homeland.

But Karl Hale who is the Tournament Director painted a different picture to Tennis Channel. He said that even in the restaurants, they've had to add food due to the reach she brings and the phones are ringing off the hook for people to buy tickets so in his view they are merely taking advantage og demand. "Our Grandstand court is 2,800 seats," Hale told Tennis Channel. "We can't put her on there because she probably sold upwards of 5,000 tickets."

"It's the first time I've ever heard of a tournament, halfway through the tournament, add a food offering just because of a player. It's great to have the Filipino community out in droves here," he added. "Alex is an absolute blessing to the sport of tennis and our tournament.

"The Filipino community, for months now, has been calling in, asking when does she play, who does she play, where does she play. They were so excited to have her.

"When we made the draw, we told them we'd announce her start time when it was confirmed. When we announced it, the phones rang, tickets sold, and boom - it was sold out Wednesday night. Just like that."

Coco Gauff who could face her in the semi-finals is very much a fan of what she brings to the sport as a player and also the fan reach she garners. She also appreciates Eala as a person too and is happy to see her thriving.

"I think the demographic that Alex is bringing to the sport of tennis is so great, and I think all of us should embrace that, because we're all benefitting from it. When I played her in Dubai, it was such a great atmosphere to play in. To just see a nation of people who maybe don't always feel represented in this sport, really see themselves out there, I think is incredibly inspiring. And it makes it fun for me to go out there and just play, and I gained some fans from her community off that match, which I think was cool.

"I know Alex personally, and what you guys see on the court is what we see off the court. I'm always going to be supporting her and it was great to see her win in D.C."