Aryna Sabalenka received a rather rare nod from US President Donald Trump earlier on Thursday (September 11) in the latter's letter to Belarus' long-time President, Alexander Lukashenko. The billionaire business tycoon-turned-politician claimed that the World No. 1 has done her country proud by winning the 2025 US Open while also wishing Lukashenko good health.Sabalenka was in imperious form at Flushing Meadows last fortnight as she dropped just one set en route to her fourth Major title victory. The 27-year-old beat eighth-seeded Amanda Anisimova 6-3, 7-6(3) in one hour and 34 minutes on Saturday to defend her 2024 crown. The top seed's performance was so convincing that it has since garnered plaudits from none other than Donald Trump, who also watched the Carlos Alcaraz-Jannik Sinner final in New York live.Going by a viral image of his letter to Alexander Lukashenko during a meeting in Minsk, Belarus, the $6 billion-worth US President (via Celebrity Net Worthy) felt that Aryna Sabalenka's New York campaign was "tremendous". The 79-year-old also insisted that the Belarusian President, who has occupied the position since 1994, likely takes great pride in his fellow countrywoman's recent laurels."We are equally pleased to acknowledge Belarusian tennis player Aryna Sabalenka's tremendous win at the US Open in New York. She represents the very best of your country and we know you must be proud of her accomplishments," an excerpt from Donald Trump's letter to Alexander Lukashenko read. "As you look forward to the coming year, we pray for your health and well-being as well as continued progress towards shared goals on behalf of the United States and Belarusian people."The reactions to Donald Trump's mention of Aryna Sabalenka elicited a few rave reactions from the tennis community on X (formerly Twitter)."Is this a joke?" one fan wrote in disbelief."The ATP/WTA won’t recognize Belarus but he certainly will," another fan joked as they made light of the situation.For those unaware, Sabalenka and Lukashenko's connection goes way back. The two were pictured together at one of Belarus' Fed Cup (now called the Billie Jean King Cup) ties, and also posed alongside him at a New Year's Eve gig in 2020.Aryna Sabalenka on reports of her being close with President Lukashenko: "I'm not supporting war"In her comments to the media following a routine quarterfinal victory at the 2023 French Open, Aryna Sabalenka gave more context to her being papped alongside President Lukashenko. The Belarusian reiterated back then that she wasn't in agreement with her country's involvement in the Russian invasion of Ukraine"We played a lot of Fed Cups in Belarus. He was in our matches taking pictures with us after the match. Nothing bad was happening that time in Belarus or in Ukraine or in Russia," Aryna Sabalenka said during a press conference in Paris in June 2023. "I said it many times already, I'm not supporting war. I don't want my country to be involved in any conflict."\The top-ranked WTA player will likely next play at the China Open in Beijing, which begins later this month.