Full Name

Michael-Kyle Steven Pepper

Born

June 25, 1998, Harlow, Essex

Age

27y 114d

Batting Style

Right hand Bat

Fielding Position

Wicketkeeper

Playing Role

Wicketkeeper Batter

RELATIONS

(brother)

Wicketkeeper Michael Pepper broke into the Essex first team as a turbo-charged T20 batter before establishing himself as first-choice behind the stumps in red-ball cricket as well. A key member of the team that reached the 2023 Blast final, he was consistently Essex's best performer in T20 over a number of seasons, leading to opportunities in the Hundred and ILT20 as well as an England call-up for the tour of the Caribbean in late 2024.

His breakthrough in first-class cricket took a little longer. He made 92 in his fourth appearance, at Chester-le-Street early in the 2021 season, but it wasn't until August 2024 that he notched a maiden Championship hundred, against Worcestershire at Chelmsford. Another came 10 days later, at home to Notts, and he then added three more the following summer, while averaging 42.94, to confirm his progress.

Pepper, who played his club cricket for Cambridge Granta in the East Anglian Premier League, signed a summer contract with Essex in 2018 after a string of impressive performances for the 2nd XI. His Championship debut came in a day-night affair against Somerset at Chelmsford in June that year. Essex held him in such high regard that they felt able to release their long-serving keeper James Foster at the end of the season.

In 2021 and 2022, Pepper led the run-scoring for Essex in the Blast - performances which won him a chance as a replacement for Northern Superchargers in the Hundred. He helped fire Essex to Finals Day in 2023, before going to greater heights the following year: 535 runs at a strike rate of 193.84, which included his first two hundreds in the format. In October, he was added to England's ODI squad for the West Indies as cover for the injured Jos Buttler.
ESPNcricinfo

Michael Pepper Career Stats

Batting & Fielding

FormatMatInnsNORunsHSAveBFSR100s50s4s6sCtSt
FC39596176214033.24281962.505721219934
List A7501346326.80111120.720121600
T20s118115122663120*25.851775150.02214293108482

Bowling

FormatMatInnsBallsRunsWktsBBIBBMAveEconSR4w5w10w
FC39------------
List A7------------
T20s118------------

Michael Pepper T20 Stats

Batting & Fielding

TournamentTeamsMatInnsNORunsHSAveBFSR100s50s4s6sCtSt
Men's 1002 teams252322352811.19223105.3800304100
Vitality BlastESS7776102109120*31.951320159.7721221996330
ILT20ADKR161603195919.93232137.500244852

Bowling

TournamentTeamsMatInnsBallsRunsWktsBBIBBMAveEconSR4w5w10w
Men's 1002 teams25------------
Vitality BlastESS77------------
ILT20ADKR16------------

Recent Matches of Michael Pepper

MatchBatWktDateGroundFormat
Essex vs Somerset170c/0s & 0c/0s24-Sep-2025ChelmsfordFC
Essex vs Warwickshire54*--15-Sep-2025BirminghamFC
Essex vs Durham41c/0s & 1c/0s08-Sep-2025ChelmsfordFC
N S-Chargers vs Originals80c/0s26-Aug-2025LeedsT20
N S-Chargers vs Invincibles6*1c/0s23-Aug-2025LeedsT20

Photos of Michael Pepper

Craig Overton celebrates after hitting the winning runs
Michael Pepper smacked six fours and two sixes
Michael Pepper hit a half-century
Michael Pepper and Paul Walter got Essex over the line
Michael Pepper slammed 64 from 34 balls
Michael Pepper reverse-sweeps during his half-century