Naomi Osaka and Iga Swiatek will be a special crossover in the final of the WTA 1000 in Miami. By background? For fights? For statistics? Nothing of that. Friendship unites them. One of those that crosses the network.
After meeting for the first time in the third round in Toronto (the Japanese won), in 2019, With jokes on social networks included, they trained together at the following US Open and kept in touch although they did not cross paths again on the circuit.
In a pandemic, with the prolonged stoppage of tennis, the round trip followed each one from home. Osaka hosted question and answer sessions at Instagram live with his fans and, among them, appeared Swiatek.
“When we played against each other, I was emotional the whole game. That was the first game I lost, where I wasn’t even mad.” the polish said.
They then revealed that they actually crossed paths for the first time during grass season. “I first saw her in Birmingham… and I felt like she was staring at me. I thought, ‘Why are you looking at me? Did I do something wrong?’Osaka recalled. “Creepy,” Swiatek replied. “But in Toronto, I was like, ‘Oh, he’s actually really nice!’ , ‘Oh no!'”.
In the role of interviewer, Osaka also asked Swiatek about her personal tastes and how she copes with the demands of being a professional athlete and a student at the same time: “This is really serious!” joked who will be the next number one in the world.
That’s how “good vibes” the Miami finalists are. The ones that will spark and more than one red smile in between.
