During the 1894 season, the Melbourne Cricket Club and the trustees of the Sydney Cricket Ground combined to organise another English tour of Australia. They asked Andrew Stoddart to raise a team, and Peel was chosen. Peel was successful in the opening first-class matches of the tour. He took five wickets in an innings against South Australia, Victoria and New South Wales; after three games, he had taken 23 wickets, and he and Briggs provided the main threat with the ball. Against Victoria, Peel also scored 48 and 65 with the bat. He played a leading role in the first Test, which "Wisden" described as "probably the most sensational match ever played either in Australia or in England". Australia scored 586 in their first innings; England scored 325 and, following-on, scored 437 to leave a target of 177 to win. At the end of the fifth day's play, Australia had scored 113 for two, and were overwhelming favourites to win.