Hampshire have announced the signing of Australian opening batsman Phil Hughes for the remainder of the season.
The 21-year-old has recently recovered from shoulder surgery and will replace Neil McKenzie who will be heading to the Twenty20 Champions League to play for the Highveld Lions.
Hughes will join up with his county colleagues at the end of the month and will be available to play Lancashire on the 31st August.
The destructive batsman was dropped by Australia during the 2009 Ashes series but had been recalled for the tour of New Zealand in March of this year.
Having missed the recent one-day series against England and the test series with Pakistan, Hughes will be looking to try and cement his place in the Australian side ahead of the Ashes series later this year.
Hughes told the Hampshire official website: "I've heard so much about the culture, team spirit and organisation at Hampshire that it feels like the perfect fit for me.
"I've just completed a 12-week rehab program after dislocating my shoulder in May and undergoing surgery. I'm 100% fit again and the opportunity with Hampshire is going to give me some much needed match fitness in preparation for the 2010/11 Australian summer."
Hughes had previously spent a successful spell in England playing for Middlesex in 2009.
