Gigi Hadid's friends don't approve of her romance with Zayn Malik.

Gigi Hadid

Gigi Hadid

The 20-year-old model has recently started dating the former One Direction hunk but her pals are not impressed with Zayn, 22.

A source told E! News: "Her friends do not quite understand what the attraction is. He is not her usual type, he doesn't share her sense of humour or ease with people [and] he's a little more self-aware and awkward."

Gigi has previously dated Joe Jonas and Cody Simpson while Zayn dumped fiancee Perrie Edwards earlier this year.

Just a few days ago Gigi took to her Twitter account to defend her new romance after a number of photographs emerged of her and Zayn holding hands on a date night in Los Angeles.

In a post that has now been deleted, she reportedly wrote: "Sometimes life happens. For whatever reason in whatever timing. And sometimes it doesn't make sense till it does. That's it.

"If there was a real way to sit with each one of you and tell you my side of things, I would. But there's not, so I won't. I've found the only way to happiness is by living as though the microscope isn't there."

Gigi is also believed to have responded to a tweet that branded their relationship "fake".

The user wrote: "You want the public to consume and believe your fake [relationship] - but don't want to be judged for it? Lol doesn't work that way (sic)."

Gigi responded saying: "Who are you to say what is fake? Your comment proves my point exactly. If you don't know you don't know."

She is then said to have deleted the posts before sharing a picture of a beach with the word "chill" on it.