Alexandra Eala‘s popularity, which continues to grow day by day, has now impacted ticket sales at the Canadian Open. Eala is set to start her campaign in Toronto on Wednesday, and the 21-year-old’s presence has managed to achieve something that even the famed trio of Big Three could not in their heydays.

The Filipino’s presence in the draw has sold out the night session for that day. In a report posted by Tennis Connected, the selling out of an opening session on Wednesday puts Eala on par with the great Serena Williams, who is the only other player to have done so. The report suggests that even the trio of Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic, and Rafael Nadal were not able to sell out sessions on opening Wednesday.

With the Masters 1000 events being played over 12 days under the new format, first-round action is often low-key with a limited audience, as it is on weekdays, and fans also want to avoid the heat as there is no roof at the Sobeys Stadium. So, for Eala to sell out a weekday crowd during the early stages of the tournament is a testament to her popularity.

This is not the first time that Eala’s matches have been in such high demand. Even at the Grand Slams, organizers had to deal with a craze among the fans to watch the Filipino play. During the Australian Open, there was huge overcrowding as Eala’s first-round match was put on an outside court, which had limited capacity, with fans forming huge queues at Melbourne Park to watch the match on the screens. The organizers were quick to accept responsibility for miscalculating the demand for Eala among fans.

Eala is currently playing at the Citi DC Open in Washington, where the fan following makes it feel like a home event for her. However, the Filipino player will not have much turnaround time for her campaign in Toronto as her final got postponed mid-match due to rain.

Alexandra Eala’s Washington Final Gets Interrupted Due to Rain

Playing for her first Tour-level title, Alexandra Eala faced off against top-seeded Jessica Pegula in the final of the Citi DC Open. However, persistent rain in Washington had pushed the final by a few hours. Once it started, Pegula won the first set 6-4, but with Eala leading 2-1 in the second set, rain had the final say, and the rest of the final was pushed to Monday.

This puts Eala in a tricky spot, as she has to undergo the same physical and mental preparation for the final once more and play her opening match in Toronto within 48 hours. The Filipino is on the hunt for her first title and will use the opportunity of the rain break to come up with renewed energy to come back in the match, all of which will put her Canadian Open match in jeopardy.

The Canadian Open organizers will have a keen eye on Eala’s match, as they will want to give her maximum recovery time before her opening match. With home favorite and defending champion Victoria Mboko already out of the event with an injury, organizers will be hoping Eala makes a deep run to keep ticket sales and audience interest high.

Such expectations are not unfounded, as Eala has been in sensational form in Washington. Carrying her form from the grass-court season, she beat the likes of Leylah Fernandez, Elina Svitolina, and Naomi Osaka to reach her first hard-court final.