Perth: With their Ashes defence hanging by a thread, England selectors face some tough decisions for the third Test against Australia, starting at the WACA Ground.

Down 2-0 and on the verge of Ashes failure, there is no margin for error for England and plenty for the selection committee of captain Andrew Flintoff, coach Duncan Fletcher and a handful of senior players to ponder.

Flintoff, himself battling ankle soreness, and Fletcher have copped plenty of criticism for the teams they have chosen for the first two Test defeats and haven't always presented a united front.

With uncertainty over what type of pitch the third Test will be played on, the English must get their bowling line-up correct, with both teams expected to delay selection until the morning of the match.

England speedsters Steve Harmison and James Anderson failed to fire in the first two Tests and are under the gun, but most pressure is on left-arm spinner Ashley Giles, who has previously been favoured over Monty Panesar.

Panesar bowled impressively in the tour game at the WACA last weekend and is widely expected to replace Giles in the side.

Giles best chance of playing could be the pitch, with the prospect of England playing both spinners if it looks like being another flat deck.

A batsman's paradise this season, the WACA has suited spinners like never before and been barely recognisable as the fast and bouncy surface that was once considered the home of fast bowling.

The Test pitch is not expected to be too lively either and is tipped to be a little two-paced.

Coming off a century at the WACA in the tour match against Western Australia, England opener Alastair Cook said that after Adelaide, he wondered if all the talk of hard and fast Australian pitches was a myth.

"You hear everything about coming to Australia and the bouncy wickets, but the bounciest wickets I've played on in my career so far have all been in England," Cook said here Monday.

"It's been surprising. The WACA one on the first day looked quite quick and the nets are quite lively, so I don't know what's going to happen on the wicket this week," he said.

Harmison bowled with renewed pace and vigour in the tour match and acting captain Andrew Strauss has backed the paceman.

"I think he's coming right," Strauss said.

"You don't go from being a world-class bowler to nothing overnight," he said.

Anderson looked certain to be dropped for Perth, but claimed three wickets against WA and Strauss said it was the best he had ever seen him bowl, while Sajid Mahmood claimed two wickets and offers extra batting depth.

England will also consider whether to retain Geraint Jones behind the stumps ahead of Chris Read, who made an unbeaten half-century against WA and kept impeccably.

On the other hand, there is nothing but anticipation in the Australian camp.

Champion leg-spinner Shane Warne needs just six more victims to become the first Test bowler to claim 700 wickets and the home side can regain the Ashes with a win in Perth.

The only decision facing Australian selectors is whether to go with all-rounder Andrew Symonds or local batsman Adam Voges at No. 6.

Symonds, hoping to be given the chance to resurrect his Test career, admitted the prospect of securing an Ashes series in the third Test was on the minds of the home team.

"You can't help but think about it," he said.

"The coach addressed us about that exact thing. It is a big part of all our lives, but if you look at it like that does it become a distraction," he said.

"We've got to keep our minds on the job, it is okay to think about it, but make sure your mind is on the job and what you have got to do," he said.