Despite his dismal away performance, England fast bowler Chris Woakes will be taken into consideration for international tours, according to head coach Brendon McCullum.

Despite Woakes' startling rise in bowling average when playing overseas, McCullum has dismissed any suggestion that the fast bowler might not be selected for the upcoming England tour. The Warwickshire bowler's statistics rise sharply when he plays outside of England, but McCullum thinks he has a good chance of making the Australian team for the next Ashes series.

The 35-year-old pacer's bowling average soars to 51.95 in 20 international matches from an astounding 21.83 in 31 home Tests. In the just finished three-match Test series against the West Indies at home, Woakes turned in a remarkable performance. During the course of the three-game series, in which England easily defeated their tourists, Woakes claimed 11 wickets.

Brendon McCullum was cited by BBC Sport as responding to the question of whether Woakes would be considered for the international Test matches by saying, “Yeah, why not? The way he bowled on these flat surfaces [in the West Indies series], reversing the ball, he was able to prise out some wickets.”

Before Stokes and McCullum took over, Woakes made his final outing in an international Test match in the Caribbean in March 2022.