Coco Gauff pens heartfelt birthday message to mother Candi - "I thank God for you everyday"

American tennis star Coco Gauff took to social media on Thursday to wish her mother Candi Gauff a very happy birthday.

The teenage phenom's parents have sports backgrounds. Her father, Corey Gauff, is a former basketball player at Georgia State University and her mother, Candi Gauff, used to be a track and field athlete at Florida State University.

Coco took to social media to wish her mum a happy birthday. She shared a collage of photos taken with her mother and stated that she thanked God every day for her mother.

“happy birthday mom. i love you more than i can ever show. enjoy your day @candigauff! I thank God for your everyday,” wrote Coco Gauff.

In an interview not long ago, Candi Gauff described how she gradually stopped acting as a coach and started acting solely as a mother as her daughter grew older.

"In the beginning, I would watch her practice, take notes, and just listen to what some of the coaches were saying," said Candi Gauff. "And then I relayed the information to Corey (Coco's father). But as Coco became a teenager, she didn’t want to listen to my advice as a coach.

"I backed away and let only my husband give that kind of advice. I became mainly the mom. To raise her and making sure that she is doing her school work, developing friendship and having a social life. And just answering some things that a young lady would want to know.”