"I felt like you were just staring, thought you hated me or something" - When Naomi Osaka spoke of her initial impression of Iga Swiatek

Naomi Osaka and Iga Swiatek may have crossed paths only a couple of times, but the two have developed a camaraderie of sorts.

They did a joint live session on Instagram in May last year, discussing an array of topics covering tennis, other shared interests as well as their initial impressions of each other.

Speaking about the first time that she took notice of Swiatek at Birmingham, Osaka said she felt the Pole was staring at her. The Japanese said she thought that Swiatek "hated" her, but that changed after they interacted in Toronto.

"I first saw you in Birmingham... and I felt like you were just staring at me. I was like, 'Why are you staring at me? Did I do something wrong?'," Naomi Osaka recalled. "But in Toronto, I was like, 'Oh, actually, she's very nice!'"

"I was surprised because I thought you hated me or something... so the entire time, I was like, 'Oh, no!'" she added.

In response, Swiatek told Osaka that she always found her interesting and wanted to "observe " her game.

Addressing the Birmingham incident, the Pole said she wanted to go up to Osaka and tell her about a funny Instagram post but was too shy to do it.

"I always thought you were very interesting, and you were playing very well and I wanted to observe was you were doing, just to be better," Iga Swiatek said.

"I remember we were stretching next to each other in Birmingham and I saw an Instagram that you posted for your dad's birthday... and I wanted to talk to you about that and tell you that it was funny, but I was too shy, so I just kept stretching." she added.

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Naomi Osaka interviewed Iga Swiatek during their Instagram live session

Naomi Osaka and Iga Swiatek at the 2022 Miami Open.

Naomi Osaka, meanwhile, interviewed Iga Swiatek during their joint Instagram live session, quizzing her on some of her non-tennis interests.

The Pole revealed some of her favorite foods, including salmon and sushi, the coffee-flavored dessert tiramisu, and her interest in wanting to develop herself a well-rounded personality outside of tennis as well.

"This is really serious!" Swiatek said, "I was to be open-minded about things, and learn new stuff. I would like to develop not only in sports... it would be nice if I went to university after I finished, or maybe do online in a few years, just to know more about the world."

Swiatek and Osaka last played in the summit clash of the 2022 Miami Open, with the former prevailing in two tight sets to take home the trophy,