Lancashire's captain was Archie MacLaren who was about to form an England team to tour Australia in 1901–02 and, despite Barnes' limited first-class career to this point, he was invited to join the squad. This came about because Lord Hawke refused to allow George Hirst and Wilfred Rhodes to travel but MacLaren had become, to quote White, "the first to see in Barnes a bowler of international calibre". Barnes' selection was a major surprise and considered to be "the most daring experiment in the history of the game". For Barnes, "job security was always a prime consideration" and he accepted the tour but with misgivings.