Centre or No. 1: Court assignment brings entourage challenges

WIMBLEDON – If you're Maria Sharapova, it's not an issue. The former Wimbledon champion has a pared-down "Team Shara" of ... three.

But Sharapova is the exception far more than the rule. When you get a big court at a Grand Slam, you have a LOT of friends.

Canadian star Eugenie Bouchard is carrying a full load in the entourage department at this Wimbledon. And the Court 1 assignment for Wednesday's quarter-final match against Angelique Kerber meant a thinning of the herd.

There are 12 seats available for each player's supporters on Centre Court - but only 15 in total for the two players on Court 1.

The photo above is from Bouchard's fourth-round match on Centre Court against Alizé Cornet of France - a full house.

In the top row, from left to right: Coach Nick Saviano's wife Jenny, Bouchard's mom Julie, brother Will, uber-fan and good-luck charm Jim Parsons and his partner, who have been fixtures at every match, and Fed Cup massage therapist Samantha Cox.

In the bottom road are Saviano, conditioning coach Scott Byrnes, hitting partner, Fed Cup captain Sylvain Bruneau and agent Sam Duvall.

The man at the far right of the top row is the man we call "The Colonel" – a players' box fixture since time immemorial, presumably there to intercede if any issues arise with the rival entourages – sort of like the Crips and the Bloods – being in such close quarters.

As well, there are seven auxiliary seats a little further down past the French group there to support Bouchard's opponent Cornet. Team Bouchard used most of those, as well.

Over there were Bouchard's father Mike (centre in the black shirt) and some other family friends.

Now, here's what it looked like on Court 1 Wednesday against Kerber:

There are seven seats for the lower-ranked player (which in this case was actually Bouchard) and eight for the higher-ranked player. It makes no sense, really, but it is what it is. It's not as though there weren't plenty of seats right behind those designated for the players.

So, tough calls had to be made.

The survivors were coach Saviano, Byrnes, the hitting partner, good-luck charm Jim and his friend, brother Will and mother Julie.

The rest – including Tennis Canada president Kelly Murumets who, from the looks of it, made another last-minute trip over from Toronto as she did in Paris for the French Open – ended up in seats in the AELTC members' section, which is just below the press seating on the other side of the court. Even Canadian gazillionaire magnate Galen Weston and wife Hilary were over on the members' side.

Bouchard will be back on Centre Court for her semi-final on Thursday. We'll see what happens then.

If there are any extra seats, we'd vote they go to fellow Montrealer and up-and-coming junior Françoise Abanda and her mom. Some day soon Abanda may be playing on that court, and getting this kind of taste of it would certainly open her eyes even wider to all that is possible. These two kids are expected to lead the Fed Cup team for years to come.

But we're not holding our breath on that one.