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| 170th | Top people from Kent |
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| Wally Hammond goes in to bat in the third test of the 1936–37 Ashes series. | ||||
| Personal information | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Walter Reginald Hammond | |||
| Born | 19 June 1903 Dover, Kent, England |
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| Died | 1 July 1965 (aged 62) Kloof, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa |
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| Batting style | Right-handed | |||
| Bowling style | Right arm medium-fast | |||
| Role | All-rounder | |||
| International information | ||||
| National side | England | |||
| Test debut (cap 227) | 24 December 1927 v South Africa | |||
| Last Test | 25 March 1947 v New Zealand | |||
| Domestic team information | ||||
| Years | Team | |||
| 1920–1951 | Gloucestershire | |||
| Career statistics | ||||
| Competition | Test | First-class | ||
| Matches | 85 | 634 | ||
| Runs scored | 7,249 | 50,551 | ||
| Batting average | 58.45 | 56.10 | ||
| 100s/50s | 22/24 | 167/185 | ||
| Top score | 336* | 336* | ||
| Balls bowled | 7,969 | 51,573 | ||
| Wickets | 83 | 732 | ||
| Bowling average | 37.80 | 30.58 | ||
| 5 wickets in innings | 2 | 22 | ||
| 10 wickets in match | 0 | 3 | ||
| Best bowling | 5/36 | 9/23 | ||
| Catches/stumpings | 110/– | 820/3 | ||
| Source: CricketArchive, 8 January 2009 | ||||
Walter Reginald Hammond, known as Wally Hammond (19 June 1903 – 1 July 1965), was an English Test cricketer, who played for Gloucestershire in a career lasting from 1920 to 1951. Beginning his career as a professional, he later became an amateur and was appointed captain of England. Primarily a middle-order batsman, Wisden Cricketers' Almanack described him in his obituary as one of the four best batsmen in the history of cricket. He was considered to be best English batsman of the 1930s by commentators and those with whom he played; they also said that he was one of the best slip fielders there had been. Hammond bowled at fast-medium pace and contemporaries believed that if he had been a less reluctant bowler, he could have achieved even more with the ball than he did. In a Test career spanning 85 matches, Hammond captained England in 20, winning four, losing three and drawing 13. His career aggregate of 7,249 runs was the highest in Test cricket until surpassed by Colin Cowdrey in 1970. As of January 2010, his total of 22 Test centuries remains an English record, held jointly with Cowdrey and Geoffrey Boycott. In 1933, he set a record for the highest individual Test innings of 336 not out, surpassed by Len Hutton in 1938. He also took 83 Test wickets. In all first-class cricket, he scored 50,551 runs, the seventh highest total scored by any first-class cricketer as of January 2010, and took 732 wickets. He scored 167 first-class centuries, the third highest of any player as of January 2010.
Although Hammond began his career in 1920, he was required to wait until 1923 before he could play full time, after his qualification to play for Gloucestershire was challenged. His promise was spotted immediately and after three full seasons, he was chosen to visit the West Indies in 1925–26 as a member of a Marylebone Cricket Club (M.C.C.) touring party, but contracted a serious illness on the tour. He began to score heavily after his recovery in 1927, and was selected for England. In the 1928–29 series against Australia he scored 905 runs, then a record aggregate for a single Test series. He dominated county cricket in the 1930s and despite a slump in form in Tests in the mid 1930s, he was made captain of England in 1938. He continued as captain after the Second World War, but his health had deteriorated and Hammond retired from first-class cricket after an unsuccessful tour of Australia in 1946–47.
Hammond was married twice, divorcing his first wife in acrimonious circumstances, and had a reputation for infidelity. His relationships with other players were difficult; team-mates and opponents alike found him hard to get along with. He was unsuccessful in business dealings, and failed to establish a successful career once he retired from cricket. He moved to South Africa in the 1950s, in an attempt to start a business but this came to nothing. As a result, he and his family struggled financially. Shortly after beginning a career as a sports administrator, he was involved in a serious car crash in 1960 which weakened him considerably. He died of a heart attack in 1965.
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Hammond was born on 19 June 1903 in Dover. His parents, William—a corporal in the Royal Garrison Artillery—and Marion Hammond (nee Crisp), lived in the married quarters at Dover Castle where Walter was born.[1] They had married the previous December.[1] Hammond spent his early years in Dover, often playing cricket. When he was five years old, his father was posted to Hong Kong to serve on the China Station and promoted to sergeant. The family remained there until 1911, followed by a posting to Malta until 1914.[2] Hammond later recalled playing cricket in Malta using improvised equipment, including a soldier's old bat which he believed taught him to strike the ball powerfully.[3]
When the First World War broke out, the Hammonds sailed home to England, with the rest of the 46th Company of the Royal Garrison Artillery. William was subsequently posted to France where his company became the 116th (Heavy) Battery.[4] Marion settled in Southsea and sent Walter to The Portsmouth Grammar School. Hammond showed more interest in games than schoolwork,[4] distinguishing himself at cricket (playing for the second eleven), football and fives. He was also much stronger than other boys of his age.[4] In 1918, Hammond's mother chose to send him to Cirencester Grammar School as a boarder; she believed his living away from home would benefit him.[5] Given Cirencester's close links to agriculture, she may have also been hoping to encourage him to pursue a career in farming. Weeks after starting his new school, Hammond was informed that his father—commissioned and promoted to major—had been killed in action near Amiens.[6][7][8]
Hammond soon excelled in various sports at Cirencester.[9] He played football for the school first eleven from his first term and quickly reached the school cricket first eleven. In cricket, he outperformed all the other players and was made captain in his second season in the team.[10] His headmaster spotted his cricket potential, and encouraged him from the start.[9] The wider community also noticed his achievements as he produced increasingly large and impressive scores; for example, his first century was scored in a match against a parents' team from the school. In an inter-house match, he scored 365 not out, albeit against very weak bowling.[9][11] Hammond enjoyed less success in the classroom; his marks were usually low, and he preferred to be out playing cricket.[12][13] In the holidays, Hammond did not usually go home to his mother, staying with school friends. This may have been to avoid her influence.[12][14]
Leaving Cirencester in July 1920, Hammond planned to go to Winchester Agricultural College. His mother also mapped out a career for him in farming.[15][16] Meanwhile, his headmaster wrote to the captain of Gloucestershire, Foster Robinson, reporting Hammond's school cricket record and suggesting that they take a look at him.[17] Hammond, who scored a century in his first appearance in adult cricket days after leaving school, played in a trial match for the Gloucestershire Club and Ground, scoring 60 runs and taking two wickets. The local press noticed this performance, and it was enough for two members of Gloucestershire's committee to visit Hammond's mother to discuss his joining the club. She was initially reluctant, but his eagerness finally convinced her and he signed a professional contract.[18][19]
Hammond made his first-class debut for Gloucestershire in August 1920; while he only scored 27 runs in his first four innings, the local press took notice and said he was "a natural cricketer with a great future before him."[20] He went to work on a farm on the Isle of Wight that winter, before moving to Bristol for the start of the 1921 English cricket season. He played only two first-class matches in 1921, both against the powerful Australian tourists. Slightly overwhelmed, and unnerved by the fast bowler Jack Gregory, he scored just two runs in three innings.[21][22] In between these games, it was arranged by Gloucestershire that would work at Clifton College, Bristol, as assistant coach. There, he was mentored by the former county cricketers John Tunnicliffe and George Dennett, who worked to improve his batting technique in the nets. Hammond later acknowledged the crucial role both men played in his success as a batsman.[23][24]
By the time of the 1922 English cricket season, Gloucestershire were ready to give Hammond an extended run in their team. However, while playing against Middlesex at Lord's Cricket Ground, Lord Harris, the M.C.C. treasurer, noticed that Hammond had been born in Kent. As he had not lived in Gloucestershire for the required length of time, he was not eligible to play for the county. Shortly afterwards, the M.C.C. told Gloucestershire that Hammond would not be allowed to represent them for the rest of the season. The press criticised this ruling, noting that it interrupted the career of a player seen as very promising, despite his lack of success so far.[25] Hammond spent the rest of the summer watching as many games as possible and learning cricket theory to help him improve his play. While he was grateful that Gloucestershire continued to pay his full wages and supported him at this time, he described this as the most miserable summer he ever spent.[26]
In the winter of 1921–22, Hammond was conscious of the need to find work.[27] He signed to play professional football for Bristol Rovers F.C. in Division Three South. Rovers were interested in him after his success at school and having seen him playing in the Bristol Downs Football League. After some appearances in the reserves, he made four appearances for the first team that season.[28] In the 1922–23 season, he played 10 times and a further four times in 1923–24.[28] He played on the right wing and scored two goals in his career, but never showed much enthusiasm for his football and was cautious around tackles, mindful that his main career was cricket.[28][29] However, he was the fastest player that the Rovers' trainer, Bert Williams, had seen at the club.[28] Furthermore, Williams and the manager, Andy Wilson, believed that Hammond could have played international football. On the other hand, Hammond was criticised in the local press for his part in two defeats shortly before he was dropped from the first team and never fitted into the club.[28] In the end, he decided that he could not play two sports at a professional level and therefore gave up football after the 1923–24 season.[27]
Hammond was conscious before the 1923 English cricket season that he had to improve his cricket after such an uncertain start.[26] In Gloucestershire's first County Championship game of the season, he scored 110 and 92 while opening the batting against Surrey, his maiden first-class century.[30] Although this was his only century of his first full season, Hammond was noticed by several critics. After watching him bat, cricket correspondent Neville Cardus, former England and Middlesex captain Plum Warner and The Times correspondent all described him as a player of potential. Although none of them saw him reach fifty, they noted his batting technique, with Cardus going as far as to describe him as a future England player.[31] In all first-class matches that season, Hammond scored 1421 runs at an average of 27.86.[32] Wisden wrote of Hammond, "Here we have in all likelihood one of the best professional batsmen of the future ... He has all the world before him and there is no telling how far he may go."[33]
Hammond passed 1,000 first-class runs in the next two seasons, although he did not have much success until very late in the 1924 season. By the final County Championship match of the season, Hammond had made just two scores of fifty in home matches. However, in that last game, he scored 174 not out after Gloucestershire had been bowled out for 31 in their first innings by Middlesex.[34] He finished the season with two centuries and 1239 runs at an average of 30.21, a record he improved in 1925 with 1818 runs and an average of 34.30.[32] He supplemented these runs with 68 wickets at an average of just under 30, having taken 47 wickets in the two seasons prior to that.[35] Hammond was not satisfied with his batting form in 1925[36] but against Lancashire at Old Trafford Cricket Ground, he played what Cardus called "one of the finest innings that can ever have been accomplished by a boy of his age".[37] He scored 250 not out, sharing a partnership of 330 with Alfred Dipper and repeatedly hooking the short bowling of Australian Test bowler Ted McDonald.[38] In the same season, Hammond began to be described as an allrounder, particularly as he opened the Gloucestershire bowling on several occasions. Jack Hobbs described him as a potentially great allrounder and writers such as Cardus noted that Hammond had many attributes as a bowler.[39] Overall, Hammond's performances that season were enough for his to be selected for the M.C.C. tour of the West Indies that winter.
In 1925–26, Hammond went to the West Indies with M.C.C., a tour which was very popular at the time; amateurs particularly liked the tour, but were often chosen for social reasons rather than cricketing ones. The touring party contained only eight professionals who were expected to do most of the bowling and provide the cricketing quality.[40] As the West Indies team did not yet play Test matches, there were no official internationals scheduled but a series of representative matches against a West Indian team were played. Rain interfered with the cricket resulting in many draws,[41] but Hammond greatly enjoyed the experience.[42] In first-class matches, he scored 732 runs at an average of 48.80, with two hundreds and two fifties,[32] and took 20 wickets at an average of 28.65.[35] He scored 238 not out in the first representative game (not a Test) against a West Indies side.[43] Following the tour, he won praise from Warner and the captain of the M.C.C. team, Freddie Calthorpe. His fielding was commented on, while Plum Warner joined Cardus in thinking Hammond to be close to playing for England in the full Test side.[44]
However Hammond fell ill towards the end of the tour. According to Hammond himself, in British Guiana, he strained his groin and was then stung by a mosquito just above the strain and became sick with blood poisoning.[45] He played in a match against Jamaica but moved awkwardly and was observed to be in pain by others in the team and missed the remaining matches of the tour.[46] He saw several doctors, but none were of any help, and on the journey home, he became very ill.[47] He stayed in his cabin most of the time with a bad fever, and there was no doctor on board.[48] The day after they arrived home, in April 1926, he had the first of 12 operations. According to Hammond, "I seemed to get worse and worse, and my life was despaired of. Just what sort of blood-poisoning it was I had, no one ever seemed to find out properly".[47] For a time, it was uncertain whether he would live, and surgeons for a while considered amputating his leg. His mother prevented this from happening as it would have ended his career.[49] Hammond was encouraged by a visit from Warner, who reassured him that he would get better and play for England.[47] After a month, he began to recover and in July was well enough to watch Gloucestershire playing in Bristol,[50] but no official announcement was made about Hammond's illness, other than to say he was in a nursing home, even though he missed the entire 1926 season.[51] Although the cause of the illness was never made clear, David Foot has argued that it was syphilis or a related sexually transmitted disease which he caught in the West Indies. He also argued that the treatment of the illness affected Hammond's subsequent character and personality.[52] That winter, Hammond was sent to coach in South Africa to aid his recovery, which he enjoyed and believed benefitted him.[53][54]
When Hammond returned to first-class cricket in the 1927 English cricket season, he made an immediate impact by scoring 1,000 runs in May, only the second man to do so after W. G. Grace.[55] He scored 99 in the first innings and 187 in the second against Lancashire,[56] again hooking McDonald and at one point hitting five consecutive fours.[57][58] Coming close to scoring 1,000 runs in June as well, Hammond finished the season with 2,969 runs at an average of 69.04 and 12 centuries.[32] He was fifth in the national averages and was chosen to play in two Test trial matches. These performances were enough to earn him selection for the M.C.C. team to tour South Africa that winter.[59] Named as one of the cricketers of the year by Wisden, he was described as a stylist who believed in hitting the ball hard and who drove superbly. His bowling and fielding were also complimented.[55]
While on tour in South Africa in 1927–28, Hammond did not dominate in the same way as he had done in the previous season and was expected to do better. He was still recovering from his illness and tired from the strain of a long season. He showed good form with the bat, but once George Geary became injured, a strong but not fully representative side found itself short of bowling so Hammond had to play as an all-rounder. He bowled quite fast and kept to a good length.[60][61][62] In all first-class matches on the tour, he scored 908 runs at an average of 47.78[32] and took 27 wickets at an average of 23.85.[35] He made his Test match debut in the first Test, scoring a quick 51 in his only innings and taking five wickets for 36 runs in the South African second innings. At one point, he took three wickets for no runs and his bowling was described by Wisden as a key factor in an England victory.[63][64] He also reached his best form in scoring 90 in the third Test,[65][66] removed both South African openers in a good bowling spell in the fourth Test[67] and scored 66 in the final Test[65] to end the series with 321 runs at an average of 40.12[68] and took 15 wickets at an average 26.60.[69] The series was drawn 2–2.
In the following season of 1928, Gloucestershire challenged for the County Championship for the first time since the First World War, inspired by Hammond's good form.[70] He scored 2,825 runs (average 65.69)[32] with three double-centuries[70] and took 84 wickets (average 23.10), the highest total of wickets in a season of his career.[35] He also took 79 catches, which is the record for a player in a single season.[32] (Some authorities, including Wisden, have 78, which is still a record.) At the Cheltenham festival, in the space of six days, Hammond scored 362 runs, took eleven wickets and held 11 catches.[71] Against Surrey, he scored a century in both innings and then held ten catches in the match, including six in the second innings,[70][72] which remains a record in a first-class match as of January 2010.[73] The day after this match finished, Hammond played against Worcestershire, scoring 80. Then, on a difficult pitch for batting, bowling off-spin, he took nine wickets for 23, the best bowling figures of his career, followed by six for 105 as Worcestershire followed on.[71][74] However, Hammond was not successful in Test matches that season against the West Indies cricket team, which England won 3–0.[62] He scored 45 in the first Test,[65] and in the second Test, made a careful 63[65][75] but in the series Hammond made 111 runs at an average of 37.[68]
In the winter of 1928–29, Hammond toured Australia with M.C.C.. The side was a strong one which was too powerful for Australia, winning 4–1. Hammond was remarkably successful, Wisden describing his batting as a "series of triumphs."[76] He scored 779 runs in five consecutive Test innings,[65] and made 905 runs at an average of 113.12 in the whole series,[68] setting a record for a Test series that has only been passed by Don Bradman.[77] In all first-class matches, he scored 1,553 runs (average 91.35).[32] However, except for one inspired spell in the final Test, in which he bowled the first three batsmen,[78] Wisden believed that his bowling was disappointing.[76] He began the tour with a century and a double century before the Test series.[79] He scored 251 in the second Test,[65] his maiden Test century, showing excellent stamina in batting for seven hours. At the time, it was the second highest score in Tests between England and Australia. His defence and off-side strokes were particularly impressive.[80] In the next Test, Hammond batted for nearly seven hours, scoring 200[65] against an accurate attack[81] and in the fourth Test he scored 119 not out and 177.[65] His second innings in the fourth Test was judged by Wisden as his best innings of the tour due to his mastery of the bowlers and the difficult match situation when he came in to bat.[82] Hammond had altered his batting style from the way he played in England, playing more carefully and avoiding risk as he knew runs would come if he did not get out. He did not play the hook shot at all and the cut shot only rarely. Unless the bowler bowled a bad ball, he limited his scoring between extra cover and midwicket.[77] Although the Australians tried to block his shots through the offside, he was still able to score runs there. Wisden believed that, even with his more cautious play, he had shown skill and beauty in his batting on the tour.[76] Gerald Howat, a biographer of Hammond, wrote that he "had left for Australia on the threshold of greatness and returned having crossed it."[83]
Almost immediately after he returned home, Hammond married Dorothy Lister just before the 1929 season began. Gloucestershire had an inspirational new captain, Bev Lyon, and challenged for the County Championship for most of the season. Hammond was needed less as a bowler due to the emergence of Tom Goddard but had a less successful season than expected.[84] In first-class cricket, he scored 2,456 runs at an average of 64.63.[32] He played in four of the Tests against South Africa. He suffered an injury and required a runner in the second Test[85] and missed the fourth Test through injury.[86] He also scored two centuries; in first Test, Hammond made an unbeaten 138 in the second innings adopting similar tactics to those he used in Australia,[65][87] and compiled 101 not out in the second innings of the final Test[65] to ensure the draw which gave England the series 2–0. He also scored 65 in the first innings of the third Test,[65] and ended the series with 352 runs at an average of 58.66.[68]
In the 1930 season, the Australians toured England, Bradman's first tour there. He scored 974 runs to beat Hammond's record aggregate of runs from 1928–29.[88] While Bradman dominated the season, Hammond found it very difficult to play the leg spin bowling of Clarrie Grimmett; he particularly struggled against Grimmett's topspinner and was dismissed by him five times.[89][90][91] The newspapers unfavourably compared Bradman's and Hammond's scores in the Test series,[92] while the latter was not satisfied with his performances.[91] He scored 306 runs at an average of 34.00,[68] only passing fifty twice. He scored a match-saving 113 in the third Test,[65] batting for over five hours,[93] and a hard-hitting 60 in the final Test, batting on a difficult pitch with little support in a losing cause.[65][94] This allowed the visitors to take the series 2–1. Later in the season, he scored 89 for Gloucestershire in a match against the Australians which was tied and which he described as the most exciting of his career. One player said that he had never seen Hammond as excited as he was at the conclusion of the game.[95] In all first-class cricket that season, Hammond scored 2,032 runs (average 53.47)[32] and for Gloucestershire, he came top of the batting averages as the club finished second in the championship.[86] He took 30 wickets,[35] including match figures of 12 for 74 against Glamorgan.[90]
Hammond toured South Africa in the winter of 1930–31, but the M.C.C. side did not contain the best available players, and South Africa won the series 1–0.[96] The touring side were short of opening batsmen, so Hammond was often used in that role. Although he was successful, this led him to bat more cautiously than he would have done in the middle order.[97] In all first-class cricket, he scored 1,045 runs (average 61.47)[32] while in the Tests, he scored 517 runs (average 64.62), passing fifty five times in nine innings.[68] A very cautious approach batting at number three saw Hammond score 49 and 63 in the first Test[98][99] and he followed with two fifties in the second Test, opening the batting and saving the game after England followed on, even keeping wicket for a time when the regular wicketkeeper picked up an injury.[100][101] Hammond continued to open in the third Test, scoring 136 not out in a more attractive style,[102][103] before again returning to number three and scoring 75 in the fourth Test.[104] In the final Test, he opened both the batting and the bowling.[105]
In 1931, while Gloucestershire continued to challenge for the Championship, Hammond scored 1,781 runs at an average of 42.40, with both his total runs and average lower than in preceding seasons.[32] He increased his first-class wicket total to 47[35] but while he remained a key batsman for Gloucestershire, he made fewer runs than was expected, at least partly due to the wet weather which led to a lot of difficult batting pitches.[96][106] In the Tests against New Zealand, their first in England, he made an attacking century in the second Test,[107] but did not pass fifty in the rest of the series, ending the victorious campaign with 169 runs at an average of 56.33.[68] In 1932, Hammond was appointed vice-captain of Gloucestershire, but it was noted in Wisden that he sometimes failed to inspire his team.[108] Hammond himself felt unable to take the same risks that Lyon had done because he was a new captain.[109] He scored 2,528 runs (average 56.17), including his then highest score of 264,[32] and his first hundred in Gentlemen v Players matches.[110] He also took 53 wickets.[35]
In the 1932–33 season, M.C.C. toured Australia for the series that became known for the use of Bodyline bowling. Hammond was one of the first names announced as part of the touring party,[111] and was included in the tour selection committee.[112] It is also possible that M.C.C. captain Douglas Jardine discussed bowling tactics with Hammond on the journey to Australia.[113] Hammond's view of Bodyline bowling was that it was dangerous and he disapproved of it, although he understood some of the reasons for its use.[114] He did not say so during the tour, preferring to keep silent and go along with his captain and the rest of the team, only openly voicing his feelings 13 years later.[114][115]
While he did not match his achievements in 1928–29, Wisden believed that Hammond had a successful tour.[116] In the Tests, Hammond scored 440 runs (average 55) and took nine wickets (average 32.33),[68][69] while on tour he scored 948 runs (average 55.76)[32] and took 20 wickets (average 28.90).[35] While Wisden said that Hammond accomplished little as a bowler,[116] team manager Plum Warner praised Hammond for bowling which he compared to that of Sydney Barnes in the first Test.[117] In an early game on tour against Victoria, Hammond was instructed by Jardine to attack the bowling of Chuck Fleetwood-Smith. Fleetwood-Smith concerned the tourists and he was believed to be on the verge of making his Test debut, but Hammond scored 203, giving Fleetwood-Smith a very hard time and he did not play a Test for several years.[116][118][119] In the first Test, won by England, Hammond scored 112,[65] playing powerfully through the off-side.[120] He followed this by taking two wickets in two balls in the second Australian innings, making the ball move around.[121] Also making an impression as a bowler in the second Test, Hammond bowled spin as England did not select a specialist slow bowler for the match. Wisden said that he bowled excellently[122] and he also impressed his captain.[123] David Frith records that Hammond engaged in a duel with Don Bradman, who scored an unbeaten century, with the pair "exchanging looks ball after ball as neither got on top of the other."[123] Hammond took three for 23 in the second innings but achieved little with the bat and England lost the match.[124] In the third Test, Hammond was observed to be uncomfortable against some fast, short bowling from Tim Wall and was heard to say, "If that's what the bloody game's coming to, I've had enough of it!"[125] He scored 85 in the second innings[65] before being bowled by a full toss from Bradman, to his annoyance.[126] Between the Tests, in a match against New South Wales, Hammond took six for 43, including the wicket of Bradman but seemed unconcerned at getting out when batting.[127] In the fourth Test, Hammond did not pass 20[65] and was criticised by Wisden, along with several others, for overly cautious batting.[128] In the final Test, Hammond scored 101 and 75 not out,[65] Wisden praising his style and brilliant play, and finished the match with a six.[129] England had won the last three Tests to claim the series 4–1.
A short tour of New Zealand followed, and Hammond scored 621 runs in three first-class innings.[32] In the first Test, he scored 227 and in the second Test, he broke the world record for a Test innings by scoring 336 not out.[65] In this innings, he played cautiously until he reached his century but then attacked a weak bowling side, particularly once he passed 200.[130] He hit ten sixes which was then a Test record, including three from consecutive balls, and shouted "Yes!" when he passed Bradman's record of 334.[131] However, Hammond's record was not considered as important as Bradman's due to the weakness of the bowling compared to the strength of that which faced Bradman. When Len Hutton broke the record in 1938, he considered Bradman's 334 as the score to beat.[132]
The controversy over bodyline bowling continued into the 1934 season, with the West Indies touring England and using bodyline tactics against England[133] and it was used on other occasions during the season.[134] In all first-class cricket, Hammond, no longer vice-captain of Gloucestershire, scored 3,323 runs at an average of 67.81, scoring 3,000 runs in a season for the first time,[32] and taking 38 wickets.[35] The press constantly reported on his achievements.[135] Yet, in the Test series, he had a highest score of 34 in three innings.[68] In the second Test, after being unsettled by facing bodyline bowling, he was cut on the chin by a short ball causing him to retire hurt; when he returned, he was soon caught. He was again heard to say that "if this is what the game had come to he might as well bloody-well quit."[133] Les Ames, who played in the series, believed that Hammond was worried by the West Indian fast bowlers in that series, and showed a weakness against short, fast bowling.[136]
In the following season, 1934 Hammond was troubled by frequent sore throats and back problems. Although appearing in less than half of Gloucestershire's matches due to poor health, injuries and Test selection, Hammond played very well for his county.[137] In all first-class matches, he scored 2,366 runs (average 76.32),[32] but took fewer wickets at a higher average than the previous season.[35] Awarded a benefit match, which raised just over £2,600,[138] Hammond was again idolised by the press and public for his achievements.[139] In the Tests, it was very different and he failed badly according to Wisden.[140] He played in all five Tests against Australia but his top score was 43 and he scored 162 runs at an average of 20.25,[68] while taking five wickets at an average of 72.80.[69] The Australians won the series 2–1. Although the press and selectors supported him, there were some suggestions that he should be left out of the side,[137][141] and Hammond felt the pressure of not living up to his batting responsibilities.[142]
The pattern of low scores in Test matches but good form elsewhere continued during the winter tour to West Indies of 1934–35 as Hammond struggled in the Test series. Wisden noted that the West Indian pace attack, considered the best pace attack in the world by Bob Wyatt, unsettled the English batsmen; the bowlers were accused of intimidation by some of the England side.[143] England lost the series 2–1 and overall in four Tests, Hammond had a top score of 47 and scored 175 runs at an average of 25.[68] In all first-class cricket he was more successful, scoring 789 runs, averaging 56.35, and having a highest score of 281 not out plus two other hundreds.[32] Hammond did play well in very difficult conditions for batting in the first Test, scoring 43 in the first innings to prevent a complete collapse and then dominating the bowlers at a critical time in his unbeaten 29 in the second innings and winning the match with a six.[65][144] Hammond believed that the pitch was the worst he had ever played on and the innings was one of his hardest.[145]
Hammond's health was poor at the start of the 1935 season. He developed septic tonsillitis which made it difficult for him to breathe, eat and sleep, and needed an operation to remove his tonsils in early 1936.[146] The weather at the start of the season was also very cold and Hammond's form was indifferent. He felt that it was his worst season in big cricket,[147] describing it as "one of the most miserable and unlucky seasons of my life."[146] In first-class matches, he scored 2,616 runs (average 49.35)[32] and took 60 wickets (average 27.26).[35] Just before the first Test against South Africa, Hammond scored his hundredth century in first-class cricket, emerging from a run of bad form against Somerset, after being encouraged to hit his way out of trouble.[148] He was the ninth player to reach one hundred centuries.[146] In the Tests, his place started to come under pressure after some low scores, and the press debated whether he should stay in the England side.[149] He did not pass fifty until the third Test, when he scored 63 and 87 not out.[65] This ended a run of 22 innings without a fifty[65] and a batting average of 23.47 for his last 14 Tests. There had been belief that he might have been left out of the side, but the press believed that he was still worth his place due to his proven ability.[150] Hammond made two more fifties in the last two Tests, and finished the series with 389 runs at an average of 64.83[68] but Hammond felt unsatisfied with his form.[147] This was also year that the lbw law was changed, a decision that Hammond supported.[151]
Before the 1936 season, Hammond had his tonsils removed, an operation that left him weak. Returning to cricket too soon, he did not bat well and took a longer rest, which caused him to miss the first Test against India. It was July before he felt fully well and began to score runs.[152] In all first-class cricket that season, Hammond scored 2,107 runs, averaging 56.94,[32] and took 41 wickets.[35] In county cricket, Gloucestershire enjoyed a successful season under a new captain, Dallas Page. Page was appointed after Hammond was unable to accept an offer to captain the county, jointly with Bev Lyon, as an amateur by accepting a position as assistant secretary at the club.[153] Hammond returned to the England side for the second Test and scored 167, his first century in 28 innings.[65] He scored quickly through his innings and Wisden described his batting as faultless and brilliant, with Hammond being in complete control.[154] Hammond continued to score heavily in the third Test, making 217 after an uncertain start where he was dropped twice. He recovered to again show his best form.[65][155] The last county match of the season, at Gloucestershire, was Tom Goddard's benefit match. A difficult pitch meant that wickets tumbled on the first day, and Hammond overheard Goddard lamenting the thought that the match would end early and lose him money. Hammond told him that he would bat all day on the second day to ensure the match lasted,[156] and he scored 317 out of a total of 485.[157]
He was selected for the M.C.C. tour of Australia in 1936–37 under the captaincy of Gubby Allen, who included him in the tour selection committee.[158] On the field, in all first-class matches in Australia (he played two more in New Zealand at the conclusion of the tour), Hammond scored 1,206 runs (average 67.00)[32] and 21 wickets (average 24.57).[35] He opened the tour with four consecutive hundreds against the state teams in first-class matches,[159] but Wisden reported that he never recaptured this form throughout the remainder of the tour, owing to the bowling of Bill O'Reilly. O'Reilly bowled leg theory at him in the later Tests to restrict his scoring and Hammond never found a way to overcome this.[158] After a first ball duck in the first Test, Hammond scored an unbeaten 231 in the second,[65] although he was criticised for scoring slowly.[160] He also took three for 29 in Australia's second innings,[161] holding the attack together in a period when the bowlers lost control and ensuring that England won the match.[160] In the third Test, Hammond played an innings he believed to be the best of his life and which Neville Cardus described as remarkable. He only made 32, but it was on one of the most difficult wickets on which he ever batted.[162][163][164] He also scored 51 in the second innings.[65] In the fourth Test, Hammond took five for 57 in Australia's second innings,[165] but his dismissal on the final morning of the match by Fleetwood-Smith, when much depended on him, ensured that Australia won the match to level a series in which they had been 2–0 behind, but went on to win 3–2. One of his team-mates observed that Bradman would not have got out as easily in a similar situation.[166] In the decisive final Test, Hammond was restricted by O'Reilly's leg theory attack and failed in the first innings[164] while a a score of 56 in the second innings was not enough to prevent Australia winning to take the series.[65] Overall, Hammond scored 468 runs at an average of 58.50 in the Tests[68] and 12 wickets at an average of 25.08.[69]
In the 1937 season, Hammond scored 3,252 runs at an average of 65.04, the second time he passed 3,000 runs.[32] He also took 48 wickets.[35] In the season, he passed W. G. Grace's record of 126 centuries and passed the record number of England appearances at the time when he moved past Frank Woolley's 64 Tests.[167] In the Tests against New Zealand, he scored 140 in the first Test,[65] and passed the total number of runs scored by Jack Hobbs to become the leading run scorer in Tests, a record he held until it was broken by Colin Cowdrey in December 1970.[168] This innings was his only score above fifty in the series, in which he scored 204 runs (average 51).[68] At the end of the season, in November 1937, it was announced that Hammond had accepted a job, joining the board of directors at Marsham Tyres, which meant that he would play as an amateur in future. This led to immediate speculation that he would be made the captain of England in the 1938 Ashes series.[169]
In the 1938 season, Hammond's first as an amateur, he scored 3,011 runs at an average of 75.27.[32] Early in the season, he was appointed England captain in a Test trial before being made skipper of the side to play Australia.[170] In general, he received some praise for his captaincy of the side in this series which was drawn 1–1,[118][171] although he was criticised for his handling of bowlers, for example not bowling Hedley Verity enough in the first Test or bowling Doug Wright enough in the fourth Test.[171] In the second Test, he scored 240, which was then a record for an England batsman playing at home, to rescue England from a very poor start.[172] This innings was widely praised by critics including Plum Warner, Donald Bradman and Neville Cardus. The Times said that the innings must have been one of the best ever.[173] In the fourth Test, Hammond held the innings together after a poor batting display, scoring 76,[174] but he made a first ball duck in the second innings and Australia won the match.[175] England won the final Test, amassing a total of 903 through careful batting following Hammond's instructions.[176] Hammond scored another fifty himself, to give him 403 runs at an average of 67.16 in the series.[68] During the season, Hammond was elected to life membership of Gloucestershire and elected to membership of the M.C.C.. He also captained the Gentlemen against the Players at Lord's, having previously captained the Players—the only person to captain both teams.[171]
In the 1938–39 season, Hammond captained the M.C.C. tour of South Africa. It was noted by Wisden that both sides played slowly, and Hammond seemed reluctant to try to force a win.[177] It noticed that Hammond, in the Tests, used more cautious method of batting, which he had used in Australia.[178] In the second Test, after a shaky start and being dropped, he scored 181.[179] In the third Test, Hammond scored 120,[65] scoring quickly but also winning praise for his use of the bowlers and his example in the field.[180] In the fifth Test, drawn after ten days play, Hammond lost the toss, having previously won it eight consecutive times. In the final innings, he nearly forced a remarkable victory chasing a target of 696 to win, firstly by promoting Bill Edrich and then playing "one of the finest innings of his career"[181] before rain forced the abandonment of the match. Hammond also scored two fifties in the series to score 609 runs in total, at an average of 87.[68] In all first-class matches, he scored 1,025 runs on the tour (average 60.29).[32] Judgements on his captaincy were generally positive; his team mates and opponents believed he had a firm control of his team and E. W. Swanton complemented his tactics.[182] On this tour, he also met the woman who was to become his second wife, Sybil Ness-Harvey.[183]
For the 1939 season, Hammond was appointed as captain of Gloucestershire, who finished third in the County Championship and beat the winners, Yorkshire, twice.[178] While Wisden praised his enterprising and adventurous style of leadership,[184] other did not approve of him, including his predecessor as captain, Basil Allen.[185] He was criticised for his lack of encouragement to his players, particularly his fast bowlers George Lambert and Colin Scott.[184][186] In all first-class cricket, he scored 2,479 runs at an average of 63.56,[32] which placed him at the top of the first-class averages for the seventh successive season.[178] One critic's judgement was that Hammond was not quite as good a player now as he once had been but was still better than any other batsman at the time.[178] In the Tests against West Indies which England won 1–0, Hammond faced some criticism of his captaincy, and R.C. Robertson-Glasgow, while defending him, said that "Hammond does not rank among the more imaginative England captains. But he is experienced and sound".[178] In the second Test, he took his 100th catch in Tests,[187] and in the third, he scored 138, his final Test century[65] but was criticised by Wisden for his frequent bowling changes. Also, while England fielded poorly, it was noted as a rarity under Hammond's captaincy.[188] In the Tests, Hammond scored 279 runs (average 55.80).[68] Throughout the series, he was involved in making public appeals to join the armed forces[189] and on the outbreak of World War II, he decided to join the army, being commissioned as a pilot officer in the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve (RAFVR) in October 1939.[190]
After joining the army, Hammond was posted to a training wing of the Royal Air Force (RAF) at Hastings in Sussex and then moved with his unit to Torquay. He had mainly administrative duties including instructing recruits, for whom he made life hard. He played some games of cricket in 1940 for various teams before he was posted to Cairo in December 1940.[191][192] His responsibilities in Cairo included promoting sporting facilities and entertainment for the men posted in the region; this included organising and playing in cricket matches. He remained there until 1943, being promoted initially to flight lieutenant and then to squadron leader.[193] Hammond's biographer, Gerald Howat, describes several instances of Hammond's events or performances being responsible for raising morale.[194] However, Cairo was an easy posting during the war[192] and Hammond was not involved directly in fighting.[195] He also spent a great deal of time in South Africa, again playing cricket and being reunited with Sybil Ness-Harvey.[196] At the beginning of 1944, Hammond was posted back to England and was involved in lecturing and drilling cadets.[197] He was able to play in many cricket matches. These were one-day games which were played in a relaxed and exciting manner. Hammond played his part, being praised by Wisden for encouraging exciting matches through his captaincy, and others praised his batting, including his hitting many sixes.[198] David Foot believed that Hammond's "high profile appearances ... gave a fillip to the nation."[199] In December 1944, Hammond was discharged from the RAFVR on health grounds, suffering from fibrositis and returned to work at Marsham Tyres.[200] Once the war ended in Europe in May 1945, several first-class matches were organised. Hammond played in six matches, scoring 592 runs at an average of 59.20 with two centuries.[32] In a match for an England team against the Dominions at Lord's which was long remembered as a wonderful occasion,[201] Hammond made a century in each innings, becoming the first man to do this on seven occasions.[202]
In the 1946 season, the first full season after the war, Hammond once again came top of the first-class averages. It was the eighth time he had done so,[203] with 1,783 runs at an average of 84.90. However, he only played 26 innings in the season,[32] and in the Tests against India, when he again captained England, he scored just one fifty, scoring 119 runs at an average of 39.66.[68] While Gloucestershire finished fifth in the County Championship, they had finished higher in the season before the war. Hammond had begun the season showing eagerness and enthusiasm for the challenge, ensuring that his team were very competetive, organised and efficient. However, he was increasingly affected by pain as the season went on, being particularly affected by damp weather.[204] There were also occasions when he showed technical weaknesses in batting. As captain, he could also be irritable and David Foot has said that he consciously created remoteness and division.[205]
As he was the current captain of England, he was an obvious choice to lead the M.C.C. side which toured Australia in 1946–47.[206] The visit was regarded as unsuccessful—Wisden believed that Hammond's inability to make large scores in the Test series—lost 3–0—was one of the reasons for the failure. Nor was Hammond a success as a captain; Wisden said that he "was not the same inspiring leader as at home against Australia in 1938".[207] It reported that he was criticised for his field placement and that people at home wondered if he could not control his men. On the other hand, Wisden said that he was unlucky and that his men were very loyal.[207] Other journalists noted that he did not consult his players, one of whom later commented that he showed little imagination in his use of bowlers.[208] Hammond approached the tour as an exercise in goodwill, and promised his men that they would have an enjoyable time. It was noted that Bradman, the Australian captain, had a more competitive and tough attitude to the series than Hammond.[209] Team spirit was very good on the outward journey, but Hammond was in the process of divorcing his wife, while Sybil Ness-Harvey, whom he planned to marry, was living in England in a state of unhappiness.[210][211] As a result, Hammond became more and more isolated, inaccessible and moody.[212] He had poor relations with the press, who were reporting details of his divorce and very critical of his captaincy.[213] As the tour progressed, Hammond was believed to lose his dynamism as a leader, give poor advice to the batsmen and make poor selections for the team.[214]
As far as batting went, Hammond started the tour well, including an innings of 208 in an early game and winning praise for his form.[213] However, once the Tests began, Hammond lost form. In the first Test, he was extremely unhappy with a decision to give Bradman not out to a catch at slip. Bradman had looked very uncertain, and it was not certain that he would continue to play cricket. When he had scored 28, the English team believed that he had edged the ball to Jack Ikin at slip. Bradman, as he was entitled to, did not "walk" (leave the batting crease in the knowledge that he was out) and the umpires said that he had hit the ball into the ground so he was not out. Opinion was divided as to whether he really should have been out. Hammond was seen to be extremely angry and loudly said, either to Bradman or the umpires, "a fine ****ing way to start a series."[215][216] After this, the relations between Hammond and Bradman deteriorated and there was a coldness between them. However, this was a turning point in the tour, Bradman went on to score 187 and Australia won the match and series.[215] In that Test, Hammond played two good innings on a very difficult wicket[217] but in the series, he did not pass fifty and scored 168 runs at an average of 21[68] before he missed the final Test. In all first-class cricket, he scored 633 runs (average 45.21).[32] He later admitted that during the tour, he was close to a breakdown,[218] while he spent much of the tour in great pain with fibrositis.[219] Hammond played his last Test in New Zealand at the end of the tour, scoring 79 in his final innings. He ended his career with 7,249 Test runs at an average of 58.46.[65] Hammond decided to retire from cricket, not returning for Gloucestershire next season, although he had been expected to do so.[220] Within 24 hours of returning to England, he had married Sybil Ness-Harvey.[221]
Hammond only played two more first-class games, for M.C.C. against Ireland in 1950 (scoring an unbeaten 92)[222] and for Gloucestershire in 1951, to help boost a membership drive, with little success. Although given an excellent reception by the crowd, his tired appearance and struggle to score runs embarrassed many of those who saw it.[223] In all first-class cricket, Hammond scored 50,551 runs at an average of 56.10 with 167 centuries. He remains seventh on the list of highest run scorers in first-class cricket (as of january 2010).[224]
Wisden's obituary described Hammond as "a most exciting cricketer ... The instant he walked out of a pavilion, white-spotted blue handkerchief showing from his right pocket, bat tucked underarm, cap at a hint of an angle, he was identifiable as a thoroughbred."[77] Furthermore, the obituary described him as having been among the top four batsmen who had ever played.[77] In the view of Neville Cardus, "Walter Hammond was one of the truly great cricketers in the game's history ... He looked the part too ..."[225] R. C. Robertson-Glasgow described him in 1943 as "the sort of cricketer that any schoolboy might wish to be ... To me he is, quite simply, the greatest cricketer who began in the last twenty years, and that, too, by a long distance."[226] E. W. Swanton called him "the most majestic presence that graced a cricket field since 'W.G.'"[227]
Hammond was balanced and still when he was batting. He was known for the power and beauty of his driving through the off-side, although he could play any shot.[228][229] Many of his contemporaries believed that he was the finest off-side player in the history of cricket.[229] In his young days, he was a very attacking player but became more defensively minded later in his career, playing more and more off the back foot.[77] Although he played the hook shot early in his career, he later shelved the stroke it as he considered it too risky.[230] He was particularly effective on difficult wickets, scoring runs where others could not even survive.[231] He was troubled by the Australian bowlers such as O'Reilly and Grimmett who bowled at his leg stump. As he had fewer proficient leg-side shots, this greatly restricted his scoring.[228][232] He was also believed to be uncomfortable facing fast bowling.[228] His team-mate Charlie Barnett said that he did not relish fast bowling, although he was capable of playing it well in the earlier part of his career.[232] Other colleagues, such as Les Ames, Bob Wyatt and Reg Sinfield also believed that he did not like to face the new ball.[136] He was also observed to sometimes get out through lapses in concentration, Cardus recording that he occasionally complained that batting was too easy.[166]
He bowled with a smooth and effortless,[233] using an action that "mirrored all the virtues."[228] He could bowl fast at times but was more often around the same speed as Maurice Tate. He changed his pace effectively and could make the ball swing if the conditions were humid.[233] He was also a capable off-spinner when the conditions suited spin bowling.[234] However, Hammond was reluctant to roll his arm over, particularly for Gloucestershire. Bill Bowes believed that he was a very good bowler who would not the pursuit seriously and avoid it wherever possible.[234] Sir Donald Bradman believed he "was too busy scoring runs to worry about bowling."[77]
In his obituary, Wisden said that "at slip he had no superior. He stood all but motionless, moved late but with uncanny speed, never needing to stretch or strain but plucking the ball from the air like an apple from a tree."[77] He was also able to field further away from the batsmen, particularly in his younger days, as he could chase the ball quickly and had a very good throw.[234]
Hammond seemed to have few friends and struck his contemporaries as a sad figure and something of a loner. Few people in cricket seemed to like him and many held reservations about him. He rarely encouraged young players or gave out praise.[235] He was considered a snob and he liked to mix with middle-class people, spending money he did not really have.[236] He was private and uncommunicative[237] while he could also be arrogant, patronising and unfriendly.[238] Some of his team-mates remembered him for being very moody and often silent.[239]
He also became involved in several rivalries with other players. Charlie Barnett and Charles Dacre, two of his Gloucestershire team-mates, came to almost hate him. Dacre often played in a reckless way which Hammond did not approve of; David Foot believed Hammond may have been jealous of him. Hammond once tried hard to injure Dacre by bowling very fast at him while he was wicketkeeper.[240] Barnett began as a close friend but fell out over Hammond's treatment of his first wife and later Hammond's refusal to play in Barnett's benefit match.[241] Hammond also did not approve of Dennis Compton as a player nor for the way he conducted himself.[242] He fell out with Learie Constantine over Constantine believing Hammond insulted him when he arrived on tour in the West Indies in 1925. The two players engaged in battles on the field, with Constantine going out of his way to attack Hammond while bowling. However, they made peace at the instigation of Hammond during the second Test in 1933 and from that point enjoyed a good relationship.[243] Perhaps Hammond's ultimate rivalry was with Don Bradman, with whom he developed an increasing obsession, based on envy and unhappiness at the constant comparisons being made between them in favour of Bradman.[244]
While the view of one of Hammond's biographers was that while Hammond liked attractive women, he was not promiscuous, David Foot quotes an unnamed cricketer saying that the two ruling passions of Hammond's life "were his cricket bat and his genitals."[245] His strong desire for women was noticed by team-mates from early in his career as a cricketer.[246] Even on tour in Australia in 1928–29, Hammond once asked to borrow a pair of field glasses which he then used to examine the Ladies Enclosure.[247] David Foot believed that he had many women friends and had liaisons with many of them. This carried on before and during his first marriage, and he even carried on relationships with two or three women at the same time. He proposed to several women before his marriage.[248] Foot documents Hammond's close relationships with several women from the start of his cricket career in 1920 until his second marriage in 1947,[249] and Hammond's activities seem to have been widely known in cricket circles.[236]
In 1929, Hammond married Dorothy Lister, the daughter of a Yorkshire textile merchant. The pair met at a cricket match in 1927 but he did not spend much time together before marriage as they had little in common. The wedding at a parish church in Bingley was widely publicised, fashionable and glamorous.[250] However, they did not get along well or communicate much, and in the opinion of people who knew the couple, Hammond treated her very badly. This was particularly the case when they began to struggle for money once her father lost nearly everything in the Depression.[251] She showed concern for his welfare and was loyal to him.[252] However, the marriage gradually broke down, despite her sailing to South Africa to join Hammond on tour in 1939 in an attempt to save it. By this time, he was already seeing his future second wife.[253] Dorothy turned more and more to drink before moving first to the Isle of Wight and then to Huddersfield.[254]
When the divorce came through, Hammond married Sybil Ness-Harvey. She was a former beauty queen whom he met in South Africa in 1938–39. They kept in touch, and during the war, Hammond spent much of his leave with her in South Africa. After the war, she followed him back to England, but found that she did not like it. When Hammond left to tour Australia in 1946–47, Sybil had to remain behind and she stayed with his mother who did not approve of her and they did not get along.[255] This was one of the factors which led to Hammond's problems in Australia on that tour.[211] On his return, they married at Kingston Register Office. Sybil had already changed her name to Hammond by deed poll. Their first child, Roger, was born in 1948.[256] Carolyn was born in 1950[257] and Valerie was born in 1952.[258]
Hammond was involved with several businesses. From an early stage of his career, he mixed with entrepreneurs.[259] In 1933, he took a job with the Cater Motor Company,[260] to assist with his and his wife's financial worries. He was used as a sales promotions manager, which mainly involved publicity and meeting customers, although he also test-drove cars.[261] When he became an amateur in 1937, he took a new job with Marsham Tyres. He joined the board of directors, again being used mainly for publicity.[262] However, he was never a hard worker or a particularly determined salesman.[263] He returned to Marsham's after he was discharged from the RAF in 1944, but as times were financially difficult after the war, he also worked as a journalist, writing for The Star during the 1948 Test series and also penning three books; all of this was done with the assistance of a ghostwriter.[264]
In 1951, Hammond resigned from Marsham Tyres.[257] His wife was homesick so Hammond and a colleague from Marsham's came up with a plan to start a business in South Africa. However, once they moved to Durban and began looking for a location, they realised they did not have enough money. In the words of David Foot, he "had gone on a naïve whim and was to suffer serious financial losses because of it."[264] He took a job with Denham Motors in Durban where he was forced to work much harder than he was accustomed to.[265] In 1959, it went out of business and money became tight. At the end of 1959, Hammond was offered a job as a sports administrator at Natal University with the aim of developing its sports facilities.[266] In February 1960, he was involved in a serious car crash.[267] For a time, it was uncertain whether he would survive. However, his strength pulled him through and he returned to work three months after the accident, becoming involved with coaching.[268] In 1962, Hammond visited England as part of a drive to recruit new members for Gloucestershire. He showed some interest in taking over a pub, but nothing came of this.[269] He became involved with the M.C.C. tour of South Africa in 1964–65, joining the dressing room and proving popular with the players.[270] On 1 July 1965, he had a heart attack and died after a few hours illness.[271]
| Sporting positions | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Walter Robins |
English national cricket captain 1938–1946/7 (Interrupted by Second World War) |
Succeeded by Norman Yardley |
| Records | ||
| Preceded by Don Bradman |
World Record – Highest individual score in Test cricket 336 not out vs New Zealand at Auckland 1932–33 |
Succeeded by Len Hutton |
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   | Cricinfo Player Profile : Wally Hammond - Wally Hammond | England Cricket | Cricket Players and Officials | Cricinfo.com |
| | "The Greatest... Bar One" - Wally Hammond: the greatest ... bar one | England Cricket News | Cricinfo.com |
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