Jaques had attracted interest from a number of counties

The 25-year-old, who previously played for Northamptonshire, will deputise while Lehmann is on tour in Zimbabwe until mid-June.

He made over 1,400 runs for Northants last summer, but then returned home to play state cricket for New South Wales.

It meant that although he has a British passport, he could no longer be seen as an England-qualified player.

Northamptonshire, who had already signed Martin van Jaarsveld and Johann Louw as overseas players, contemplated legal action to enable Jaques to continue playing for them.

They initially claimed that current registration regulations, as they applied to Jaques, were in breach of European employment law, but decided not to pursue the matter after talks with the England and Wales Cricket Board.

Read more: Phil Jaques interview

A club statement read: "After considerable thought and consultation, the committee fully support the need for regulations which focus on the development of cricketers who are committed and qualified to play for England.

"In view of the above, the application to register Phil, as a result of holding a British passport, has been withdrawn."

Jaques could qualify to play for England in three years if he spends the majority of each year in the UK, but he told BBC Sport last September that he wanted to give himself every chance of playing for Australia.