As the world’s elite tennis players gather in Wimbledon for this year’s championships, Cassell – part of the Hachette group – has announced the acquisition of Being Carlos Alcaraz by tennis journalist Mark Hodgkinson. Garbiñe Muguruza, a former women’s singles world number one from Spain, has written the foreword.
Trevor Davies acquired world English language and Spanish rights from Nick Walters at DLA Agency, with publication scheduled for 4 September 2025.
Hodgkinson’s previous title with Octopus, Searching for Novak, was named International Sports Book of the Year at the Charles Tyrwhitt Sports Books Awards 2025. A former Daily Telegraph tennis correspondent, Hodgkinson has also written biographies of Roger Federer, Andy Murray and Serena Williams.
Based on interviews with those close to Alcaraz, including his coaches, friends and old teachers, Cassell says Being Carlos Alcaraz “offers fresh insights into a tennis phenomenon”.
Hodgkinson says: “Carlos Alcaraz talks about playing happy tennis. This has been happy researching and writing. It was a pleasure spending time at Alcaraz’s tennis club and at Juan Carlos Ferrero’s tennis academy, as well as talking to others around El Palmar and Murcia who were so generous with their time and insights. I’m delighted to be working with Trevor Davies and the rest of the amazing team at Octopus again.”
Davies said: “In the award-winning Searching for Novak, Mark proved that tennis fans want a deep analysis of their heroes, so they can truly understand what makes them tick in a sport where any chinks in your armour are cruelly exposed to the watching world. With Being Carlos Alcaraz, Mark has once again shed new light on tennis’ newest star through incredible research, interviews and his encyclopaedic knowledge of the sport. Now the ‘Big Three’ of Novak, Rafa and Roger are exiting the court, Alcaraz is the GOAT-in-waiting, and Mark’s book is the first to really get under the skin of men’s tennis’ new superstar.
