by John Osborn ·
Friday, April 17, 2026
Senior Khivi Nanra attacks at net as her partner, junior Meghna Nambiar, looks on. They won the first doubles position, 6-3, 6-3. (Photos by Lisa Aciukewicz)
The Bromfield girls tennis team lost, 3-2, to Shrewsbury at home on Friday, April 10, in a match complicated by the absence of the team’s first singles player, who was out due to illness.
The loss was the team’s second, leaving the team with a 1-2 record for the season so far. Bromfield won its opener 3-2 against new league opponent Grafton before falling 5-0 to Westborough.
With Michele Xu out, the lineup shifted down one position, with junior Misha Kalava, a transfer student, moving up to first singles. Kalava won her match convincingly, defeating sophomore Pearl Sawnhey of Shrewsbury 6-2, 6-0. And she did it playing through pain. Kalava had pulled both hamstrings two days earlier and was still recovering. “That was my biggest obstacle today,” she said.
The two players kept to the back court for most of the match. “Normally I like to come to the net, but I knew my opponent was pretty strong at net, so I tried to stay back and push her back as much as possible,” said Kalava. “Props to her. She’s an amazing volleyer.”
Senior captain Khivi Nanra and junior Meghna Nambiar won at first doubles, defeating sophomore Kaelyn Park and sophomore Aoliti Jayendran 6-3, 6-3. This is the first season the two have played together as a doubles team, and the partnership is already showing promise. “We’re really good friends and we kind of sit on the same wavelength, so we know what we want each other to do,” Nanra said. “Meghna is covering the volleys and we’re really good with serving.”
Nanra is returning from a serious injury that sidelined her last season. She had played only twice in the two weeks before the season opener. “I’m really surprised with how I’m doing,” she said. “It’s been a journey, but I think it’s all right.” After competing as the team’s second singles player last year, she has moved to doubles this season, partly to reduce the physical demands on her recovering body.
Shrewsbury took both remaining singles matches and claimed the second doubles point by default, as Bromfield’s roster of only eight players—two of whom, according to coach Chris Holmes, are not yet ready for match play—left the team short.
Kalava reflected on the team’s situation. “We have a lot of obstacles against us. … But despite that, we are playing these matches with all we’ve got. I’m so proud of our team.”
Nanra shared that optimism. “I think we’re still a very strong team. There’s only eight of us, but we’re really tight.”
Despite the challenges, Holmes sees reason for optimism. The team returns several strong players from last season’s squad, which made it to the state semifinals, and Holmes expects the girls to remain competitive at the state level as the season progresses.
This week, with Xu back in the lineup, Bromfield defeated Nashoba Regional 4-1.
Right: Misha Kalava powers through a forehand return as the team’s first singles player. She went on to win her match, 6-2, 6-0.
Shrewsbury 3, Bromfield 2
- First singles: Junior Misha Kalava (Bromfield) defeated sophomore Pearl Sawnhey (Sh), 6-2, 6-0
- Second singles: Senior Anushri Mishra (Shrewsbury) def. 7th-grader Nina Livornese (Br), 6-4, 6-2
- Third singles: Sophomore Meena Lakshwaran (Sh) def. junior Fatima Mulyono (Br), 6-3, 6-1
- First doubles: Senior Khivi Nanra and junior Meghna Nambiar (Br) def. sophomore Kaelyn Park and sophomore Aoliti Jayendran (Sh), 6-3, 6-3
- Second doubles: Shrewsbury def. Bromfield by default