Ollie Pope is an up-and-coming wicketkeeper-batsman with all the traits of the modern-day cricketer: innovative, fit, agile, and powerful. The 20-year-old cricketer rose through the ranks of age-group cricket and reached the peak of his powers in the 2017 season for Surrey, excelling with the bat in all three formats. In the era of the shorter formats, Pope's intelligent batting in T20 has been lauded all over the English circuit. Despite the eye-catching feats in the shorter, glitzier formats, Pope has a solid base technique which has been exhibited in the county championship with buckets of runs against the red ball and a perfect trigger movement which has made him a rather assured player against the moving ball.
Pope signed a two-year contract with Surrey in August 2016. He played his first county game against Middlesex at The Oval, the first time that Surrey had fielded 4 teenagers in a Championship game since the Second World War. His first hundred in county cricket came in his third game against Hampshire at the Ageas Bowl. A well-built young lad, with ample upper-body strength, Pope is quick to pick up length and is known for his horizontal-batted shots. In context this was a particularly good innings, given that Hampshire were on the verge of a victory only for Pope to stand in the way and deny them one on the final day.
