Wally Hammond

Wally Hammond.
Wally Hammond (19 June 1903 – 1 July 1965) was an English first-class cricketer, primarily a middle-order batsman, who played for Gloucestershire in a career that lasted from 1920 to 1951. Beginning as a professional, he later became an amateur and was appointed captain of England. Wisden Cricketers' Almanack described him in his obituary as one of the four best batsmen in the history of cricket. In a Test career spanning 85 matches, he scored 7,249 runs and took 83 wickets. Hammond captained England in 20 of those Tests, winning 4, losing 3, and drawing 13. His career aggregate of runs was the highest in Test cricket until surpassed by Colin Cowdrey in 1970; his total of 22 Test centuries remained an English record until Alastair Cook surpassed it in December 2012. Overall, he scored 50,551 runs and 167 centuries in first-class cricket games, respectively the seventh and third highest totals by a first-class cricketer.