Faulkner made his international debut for Australia in a 2012 Twenty20 International against India. He toured England in 2013 and was selected for the fifth Ashes Test of the tour. Australian selector John Inverarity described Faulkner as the sort of player who "gets things done", while captain Michael Clarke said that Faulkner could provide some toughness that Australian might have lacked in previous matches on the tour.