For the Love of the Game

For senior Pranay Bolneni, tennis is something he takes very seriously.

Bolneni and his Colonial teammates are off to another fast start and the quiet captain is one of the main reasons why.

If there is anyone who would know just how far Bolneni has come with a racket in his hand its Shrewsbury head coach Josh Handy.  

“I’m so proud of Pranay and how far he’s advanced. I’ve been working with him since he was 7 years old and to see the progression is just amazing,” Handy said. “It’s been fun because everything you see on the court, we’ve worked on since he was a little kid.”

Handy is now in his 14^th season as the Colonials head coach and has had a chance to watch his young star blossom on the court. He is also a tennis professional in the city of Worcester.

“It’s great for me because I get to see everything culminate during his senior season,” said Handy. “He’s a good player and a great kid.”

When asked what attracted him to the sport of tennis, Bolneni didn’t hesitate.

 “I like how in singles tennis whether you win or lose it’s always on you,” said Bolneni after a recent victory over host Fitchburg, a win that added to his undefeated season. “I like to be able to take full responsibility on how the match turns out.”

Needless to say, Bolneni has been pretty happy with the results thus far both individually and from a team stand point. The Shrewsbury captain is the team’s number one singles player, and is 3-0 on the young season.   

“I like to look at the court during a match and figure out the different angles during the course of a match,” Bolneni said. “It all makes sense to me and it’s why I enjoy the sport so much.”

Last year Bolneni advanced to the quarterfinals of the Central Mass. Tournament in the individual division. This year, he’s hoping to advance to the next round and go for a Central Mass. title.   

For Bolneni, while individual success is important, one of his major goals in 2011 is the success of the entire Colonials team.

“Our goal is to win every match we play in and take it one match at a time,” he said. “We have some big matches on our schedule against teams like Wachusett Regional and , but we don’t want to look that far ahead. We just want to play well and try to win each of our matches.”

When asked who is his favorite players are on the pro circuit, Bolneni answered Roger Federer and Kim Clijsters. The Swiss born Federer is the former Number 1 ranked player in the world and is currently ranked Number 3, according to the Association of Tennis Professional. The Belgian born Clijsters is currently ranked Number 2 in the world on the women’s side. 

Bolneni hasn’t officially decided yet where he wants to attend college next year, but has narrowed his choice down to a pair of schools in the University of Virginia and New York University. He plans to major in the field of finance.

“I’ve lived in Shrewsbury my entire life and I think it would be really cool to live in a big city for a little while,” he said. “I’ve visited both schools and liked them both. I just haven’t made up my mind yet.”