YORKSHIRE have drafted in Grant Flower to work with their batsmen this week.

Flower, the former Zimbabwe batsman and currently the batting coach of Pakistan, linked up with the squad during training yesterday ahead of their Specsavers County Championship match against Hampshire at the Ageas Bowl, starting today (2pm).

Flower’s brief role as a batting consultant will then see him remain with the squad for the first two days of the match.

Yorkshire’s hierarchy have long since spoken about the need to improve their batting in four-day cricket, with their haul of three batting bonus points the joint lowest in the country so far this summer.

Director of cricket Martyn Moxon said: “Grant’s going to spend three days with us, just to be around for the lads to chat to about batting, particularly in red-ball cricket.

“He’s spent a bit of time over here on Pakistan’s tour, and I’ve asked him to come down here and be around us to see if the lads can glean anything from him.

“It’s probably going to be the same message we’re giving them, but from a different voice.

“It’s something we’ve spoken about for a few weeks as to whether it was worth doing.

“We thought about who might do that, and obviously with Grant being here with the Pakistan team and talking to him at Headingley before the Test Match (earlier this month), it seemed to be a nice fit.

“I’ve known him over the years from just being in cricket.

“It was just at Headingley that I thought, along with Andrew Gale, it would be worth him coming down.

“We also spoke to the batters, and they just thought ‘Yeah, it would be quite useful to have someone like Grant’.

“When we started talking about it, we didn't know who it was going to be. But with Grant being over here and the way I saw Pakistan practising prior to the Headingley Test – obviously it didn't work out in that Test, but it did at Lord’s – it made me think.

“I saw the way he was working with the players, and it kind of resonated that it could be a good thing to use him while he’s here.”

Flower has been working with Pakistan since July 2014, and they finished their short tour of the UK and Ireland last week with a pair of T20 internationals in Scotland.

“Yes (this is a one-off),” added Moxon. “He’s got a job with Pakistan.

“Now, that’s not to say…let’s see how it goes.

“If the lads really relate to him and it goes well, who knows going forward what might come of it. But, at the minute, it’s purely for three days.”

This floodlit clash against the pink ball is the first of two crucial Championship matches in nine days for a Yorkshire side who sit third bottom in Division One with two wins from five matches.

They are a point above Hampshire, who have played six and won only once.

However, Yorkshire are only 33 behind leaders Somerset having played the same number of games.

If they can win this and beat Surrey at Scarborough, starting on Monday, they will be firmly in title contention going into the second half of their campaign.

Jonny Tattersall will make his Championship debut behind the stumps against a Hampshire side who are expected to field current and former South Africa seamers Dale Steyn and Kyle Abbott.

Yorkshire squad: Patterson c, Ballance, Bresnan, Brook, Brooks, Carver, Coad, Leaning, Lees, Lyth, Pujara, Tattersall w, Thompson.