KARL Brown is delighted that his winter work is reaping rewards at the top of Lancashire’s LV= County Championship batting order.

The 27-year-old has shown positive signs against the red ball with scores of 57, 56 and 96 in his last three innings against Gloucestershire and Leicestershire.

He is still searching for a first Championship hundred since April 2011, but he looks to have done enough to fight off competition from soon to be fit again Luis Reece and fellow Boltonian Haseeb Hameed and earn a decent run in the side.

“I think people looked at me as quiet an aggressive player,” said the former Atherton man.

“I can still play those types of innings. But, as an opener, sometimes you have to curb that a bit and get your head down.

“It doesn't matter how many balls you face.

“I’ve worked hard over the winter to bat long periods of time and it has started to pay off.

“In practice, you can put time on it or balls on it. I just tried to bat for two hours at a time maybe. I tried to put a value on my wicket, and when I got out in practice, it really meant something. That's what I’m looking to take into the games now.

“I’m hugely pleased with how I’ve played in the last couple of games. As a batsman, all you want to do is score as many runs as you can.”

Brown has batted in a number of positions in the Championship during his career, with the majority of his appearances coming away from the new ball.

He scored his only hundred, against Sussex in 2011, batting at number four.

But he has faced the new ball regularly in county second XI cricket, and added: “I grew up as an opener as a kid and came into the second team opening. It is the other positions I have had to get used to over the years.

“I came into the set-up as an opener, and I actually enjoy it.”

Ironically, Brown has been unable to marry good form in the Championship with good form against the white ball this year - something that is usually the other way around.

He has only scored 99 runs in seven T20 matches, including a best of 42. He added: “That's the nature of Twenty20 cricket. You can easily go out there and smash it all over the place in the next game.”