Roope was born in
Fareham, Hampshire. After spending five years developing his cricketing talent at St John's School in
Porthcawl, he was educated at
Bradfield College in Berkshire, and played for
Public Schools against
Combined Services at
Lord's in 1963 and 1964. He played
Minor Counties cricket for
Berkshire in 1963, before making his
county cricket debut for
Surrey in 1964. He received his Surrey
cap in 1969. He was tall and wiry, with distinctive curly hair. It is often said that Roope was at the non-striking end when both
John Edrich, and later
Geoff Boycott, reached their 100th
centuries in first-class cricket in 1977. Although the second is certainly correct, achieved at 5.49pm on the first day of the fourth
Ashes Test at
Headingley on 11 August, when Roope had to take evasive action to avoid a straight-hit four off the bowling of
Greg Chappell to bring up Boycott's century, a close inspection of the record books indicates that Roope had swapped batting positions with
Geoff Howarth, for the match against
Derbyshire at
The Oval on 12 July, and Howarth was at the crease when Edrich scored the necessary runs off the bowling of
Alan Hill, shortly after play should have ended at 5:30pm on the third and final day. However, another version of events suggests that
both Roope and Howarth were in the middle when this happened, with Roope acting as a
runner for Howarth. He toured India and Pakistan with England in 1972–73, making his Test debut in the fourth Test against
India at
Kanpur. He played at home against
New Zealand and
West Indies in 1973, making two Test half-centuries, but was not then selected until the fourth and final Ashes Test against
Australia at The Oval in 1975. After a first-innings duck, he made his best Test score of 77 in the second innings, enabling England to save the match against
Dennis Lillee,
Jeff Thomson and
Max Walker, despite a first innings deficit of 431 runs. He then fell out of favour again, before returning for the fourth and fifth Ashes Tests in 1977. He scored three further half-centuries on tour to Pakistan and New Zealand in 1977–78, and one more playing at home against
Pakistan in 1978. His last Test appearance was in the first Test against New Zealand at home later in 1978. He also played as an amateur in the Mid Sussex League for Ardingly and Cuckfield and in the Mid Sussex League Representative side in 1984 and 1985. He played again for Berkshire from 1983 to 1988, after retiring from Surrey. He moved to
Yorkshire, where he became a coach at
Ampleforth College and
Woodhouse Grove School, and played for
Hall Park in the Airedale and Wharfedale League. He was also a cricket commentator for
BBC Radio Leeds. Graham Roope died suddenly of a heart attack in
St George's, Grenada, while on a charity cricket tour. He was married three times, with a son and two daughters. ==Notes==