Amla, who is currently playing in a home Test series against Australia, will be available for County Championship and Royal London One-Day Cup matches during his spell.

The pedigree of Amla – he has been ICC No. 1 ranked batsman in both Test and ODI cricket – adds further to Hampshire’s batting line-up following the acquisition of Sam Northeast from Kent.

Hampshire’s director of cricket Giles White said: “Hashim is an exciting acquisition for us and we feel he’ll be an excellent fit within the group we’ve got, both on and off the pitch.

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“He’s a world-class player and this addition adds strength and depth to our batting for the first three months of the season – runs on the board are important and hopefully this will help us achieve that consistently in both the four-day and 50-over competitions. We’re looking forward to welcoming Hashim and his family to the club.”

Hashim Amla said: “I am really pleased to be joining a club like Hampshire. Everyone I have spoken to, who have either played or are currently playing there, have only had good things to say about the team.

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“I look forward to spending the first three months of the season with them, which works out well for me to be able to get some high-quality cricket in before the Proteas tour to Sri Lanka in July.”

The 34-year-old No.3 has previously had periods in county cricket with Essex, Nottinghamshire, Surrey and Derbyshire.