 Hammond struck his contemporaries as a sad figure , a loner with few friends in cricket . He rarely encouraged young players or gave out praise . He liked to mix with middle @-@ class people , spending money he did not really have , leading to accusations of snobbery . Team @-@ mates regarded him as moody , private and uncommunicative . Often silent in the company of others , he could be arrogant and unfriendly . Charlie Barnett and Charles Dacre , two of his Gloucestershire team @-@ mates , came almost to hate him . Dacre often played in a reckless way of which Hammond disapproved ; Hammond , in turn , may have been jealous of him . Hammond once tried hard to injure Dacre by bowling fast at him while he was wicketkeeper . Barnett began as a close friend but fell out over Hammond 's treatment of his first wife and later his refusal to play in Barnett 's benefit match . Other players who were involved in disputes with Hammond included Denis Compton , whose cavalier approach Hammond disliked , and Learie Constantine , who believed Hammond insulted him in the West Indies in 1925 , although the two later made peace . Hammond 's ultimate rivalry was with Bradman , who overshadowed him throughout his career , and with whom he developed an increasing obsession . It was not enough for Hammond to be the second @-@ best batsman in the world , and he disliked the constant comparisons made between them in Bradman 's favour . He felt not only that he had to do well , but also that he had to score more than Bradman . 
