SINGAPORE — Eyes narrowed, fists tightly clenched and with sweat dripping down her face, Nurshahidah Roslie glares intently at the imaginary opponent in front of her. Without any warning, she springs into action.

A left jab, a right cross, two left hooks. Another right cross, a left uppercut.

Her hands are a blur, and her footwork is mesmerising as the 28-year-old moves her body in perfect tandem with each punch, and she almost seems to glide across the ring at the Juggernaut Fight Club (JFC) before seamlessly finishing her shadowboxing routine with a ferocious right cross.

It is a flawless display of power, precision and grace.

Now, imagine her executing that in the ring against an actual opponent, and it will immediately become clear to you why Shahidah is Singapore’s first-ever professional boxing champion.

Nicknamed “The Sniper”, she claimed the Universal Boxing Organisation (UBO) Female Intercontinental super-featherweight title in June after beating Thailand’s Wondergirl Sithsaithong at the Singapore Fighting Championships (SFC) 3.

The bout was Shahidah’s third fight – and third win – since turning professional at the start of the year. But the 1.65m tall boxer has already made a name for herself as a tough-as-nails, dogged and resilient fighter in the ring.

However, it is the clinical precision of her punches, and the devastating power behind each blow, that sets her apart from her competitors.

Indeed, it was one of Shahidah’s trademark powerful punches to Sithsaithong’s midsection that floored the 12-fight veteran and earned her a second-round technical knockout.

“As a boxer, I like to wait for the right opportunity (before striking),” Shahidah explained to TODAY.

“I’m a patient fighter, and that’s why I didn’t do well as an amateur boxer because that requires fighters to go in and out of brawls very quickly.

“Instead, I prefer to concentrate on connecting with the punches that will hurt, and putting lots of power behind them so that they really count. This style is more suited for the professional circuit, and since turning pro, I’ve managed to develop it even further so I’m more dangerous now.”

MARTIAL ARTS BUFF

While Shahidah may be basking in the glow of being a professional boxing champion, her journey in the sport has not always been smooth-sailing.

Since picking up boxing about 10 years ago, the self-confessed martial arts buff, who has a black belt in taekwondo, has had to face her fair share of fights outside the ring.

Her lowest point came about five years ago, when the lack of vibrancy in the local amateur boxing scene made her seriously question her long-term future in the sport.

“When I was still fighting in the amateurs, there would be many days when I’ll be training hard and watching my diet closely in order to make weight (for a fight),” revealed Shahidah, who keeps her weight between 58.5kg to 63kg, depending on the weight class of her fights.

“But eventually, after all that hard work and sacrifices, during the weigh-in day, they would tell me that there were no opponents for me.

“This is because in Singapore, there isn’t really a platform for women’s boxing, so there aren’t many fighters out there. And it doesn’t feel nice to prepare for a fight, but be told there isn’t an opponent for you in the end.

“When this happened to me two to three times in a row, I began to think that maybe this sport was not for me.

“In the end, I gave up (boxing) for a while. I needed to get out (of the sport) for a while to get my head right and eventually, with the help of those close to me, I found my passion again and got back on my feet.

TOUGHEST FIGHT

The University of Western Australia graduate suffered another disappointment at last year’s SEA Games on home soil, as she suffered defeat to Myanmar’s Ka Ve Ro Ni in the featherweight (57kg) division quarter-finals.

But her toughest fight to date occurred in Taiwan at the City Cup invitational tournament three years ago, as she struggled with self-doubt during her preliminary loss to eventual champion Ri Kwang Suk of North Korea.

“That fight, which was my first big international match, was one of my worst moments in boxing,” said Shahidah. “My opponent from North Korea came out really aggressively, was really strong, and I wasn’t expecting that level of fight.

“I got a black eye in the first round and during the rest period, I really felt like throwing in the towel.

“Even in the second and third round, I felt like I wasn’t good enough and wanted to give up. But my coach (Arvind Lalwani) told me to continue on and encouraged me throughout.

“I did much better in the final round. Even though I lost that match, I’m still proud that I managed to go all four rounds against someone who went on to become the champion.”

The questions arises - what does her family say about her choice of sport and career? One can only imagine the looks of horror on her parents’ faces when she told them of her career choice.

Shahidah, who has a younger sister, laughed. “I’ve always liked sports when I was growing up, and with my martial arts background, they weren’t surprised when they found out I took up boxing.

“My family members are always there for my fights. Although they’re worried about my safety and will pray for me, they’re very supportive and won’t try to stop me from doing what I like.”

PILLARS OF SUPPORT

While Shahidah credits her friends and family as valuable pillars of support, there is perhaps no one who has played a more influential role in her boxing career than Lalwani.

Not only has Lalwani, who owns JFC and is the chief promoter of SFC, been personally coaching Shahidah for about eight years now, he was also the one who paved the way for her to turn professional and become a champion.

And it is clear from the reverential way she talks about Lalwani that Shahidah holds her coach in the highest regard.

“Arvind has not only been my coach, but my brother, my friend and the source of my strength,” said Shahidah, who currently works as an operations manager at JFC.

“He has been very important in my (boxing) career. If not for him, I would have given up the sport a long time ago, and it is because of him that I pushed on to go into the professional circuit

“The thing about Arvind is that he’s not in this industry for the money that the sport can bring. He’s genuinely concerned about the development of the sport itself. This is reflected in the selfless way he develops us as athletes, and the most important thing to him is that the fighters have got good welfare and is well-taken care of.”

For his part, Lalwani believes Shahidah has what it takes to go all the way to the top, and is determined to ensure she gets a fair shot at international success as he outlined his goal of having his charge challenge for a world title by 2017.

Revealing that Shahdiah’s victory at SFC 3 has seen her inundated with offers to fight in events in Japan and South Korea, Lalwani said: “For now, we aim to get Shahidah a couple more fights this year and build her experience up a bit more.

“Next, we’ll get her to fight for more regional titles until she’s ready for a title shot with either of the world boxing organisations, which I could see happening in a year’s time.

“When Shahidah started off with me eight years ago, she was still a very raw talent. But she has progressed tremendously since.

“There is still room for improvement, but we’ll get her where she needs to be in due time.

“The thing about her is that she not only has fighting spirit, but also a lot of heart. She doesn’t give up easily, even if the going gets really tough and will fight on till she can’t anymore.

“That’s character that is hard to build – it’s either you have it or you don’t, and she has it.

“She definitely has what it takes to be a world champion one day.”