Cricket Australia reduced the spinner's availability, previously a season-long deal, to seven County Championship matches last week which left the 2015 winners short for the T20 competition getting underway next month
Lancashire have moved to cover for the loss of Nathan Lyon by adding Chris Green for the T20 Blast.
Lyon, initially signed for the whole of 2024, is only available for seven of the first nine rounds of the County Championship after Cricket Australia intervened to manage his schedule.
The Red Rose are already seeking an adjustment after the off-spinner bowled just two overs on debut during the rain-affected draw with Surrey.
But they have secured cover for the Blast with the addition of 30-year-old Green.
A bowling allrounder with exactly 200 T20s under his belt, the Sydney Thunder captain has a wealth of Big Bash League experience and outings in the Caribbean Premier League, Indian Premier League and the Pakistan Super League to his name.
Previous Blast stints at Birmingham Bears and Middlesex have yielded 29 wickets and 324 runs in 27 matches combined.
Green made his first and so far only international appearance against India in 2023 (INDRANIL MUKHERJEE/AFP via Getty Images)
Green has represented both Birmingham Bears and Middlesex in the Blast (Alex Pantling/Getty Images)
"It's a really strong squad at Lancashire and after speaking with Mark Chilton and (head coach) Dale Benkenstein ahead of signing, I am really excited about what we can achieve together this summer," said Green, who played his one and only international for Australia against India in 2023.
Lancs' director of cricket performance Mark Chilton added: "Following the news that Nathan would no longer be available to play T20 for us, Dale and I were really keen to ensure that when going back into the market for an overseas replacement, they would have full availability across both group stage blocks in the Blast which we believe is important to get some continuity in the team.
"The attraction with Chris was his full availability combined with his skillset - which is the ability to bowl spin across all phases of the game - and also his batting as Chris has become really effective towards the back end of an innings, an area in which we felt the team could do with a bit of strength.
"Chris is also a really experienced campaigner, captain of Sydney Thunder in the BBL, and at times we may field a young T20 side this year so adding experience in that format will be a real help for us."
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