 Hammond married Dorothy Lister almost immediately after returning home , just before the 1929 season began . Gloucestershire 's inspirational new captain , Bev Lyon , led another Gloucestershire challenge for the County Championship . He used Hammond 's bowling less due to the emergence of Tom Goddard , but Hammond was less dominant with the bat than was expected . In first @-@ class cricket , he scored 2 @,@ 456 runs at an average of 64 @.@ 63 . He played in four of the five Tests against South Africa , missing the fourth due to injury ; he also suffered an injury in the second Test which required him to use a runner . Adopting tactics similar to those with which he had success in Australia , he scored two centuries — an unbeaten 138 in the first Test , and a match @-@ saving 101 not out in the final Test which gave England a 2 – 0 series victory . His only other innings over fifty was played in the third Test . He ended the series with 352 runs at an average of 58 @.@ 66 . At the time , critics considered him the best batsman in the world . 
