Andy Caddick had his second pain-killing injection in 36 hours in a bid to overcome his back spasms in time for the start of the third Test at Perth on Friday (Nov 29). Caddick underwent a scan on Monday and had the first injection on Tuesday but there was little sign of improvement. A decision on whether he is fit to play is not expected until shortly before the match. If he is ruled out then either Alex Tudor or Chris Silverwood will take his place.

"Thursday will be a very important day for Andy to prove his fitness for the Test match," said Nasser Hussain. "If he's 100% fit and can do a job for England then he'll play."

Caddick's humour has not been improved by a weekend article in which Mike Atherton said he suffered from "mental scarring" when playing against Australia. It's an accusation Caddick has rejected as "rubbish".

"I played with and under Mike Atherton for a long time and had great respect for him," Caddick said, "which is why I found what he had to say about me this week so disappointing. I never heard Atherton suggest that he was mentally scarred by Glenn McGrath, who used to get him out on a fairly regular basis.

"Now Alec [Stewart] and I are having a tough time on this tour, suddenly he's got the answer to our problems. It's rubbish and it annoys me, particularly coming from someone who shared a dressing room with us and should know better. Atherton knows me well enough so I wonder why he did not come and put his theories to my face. We would have had an interesting discussion."

Caddick's recovery will not have been helped by England's three-hour flight from Adelaide to Perth on Tuesday. James Kirtley has already been called up as replacement for Darren Gough in the one-day squad, and remains an option for England, but one they'll want to take only as a desperate last measure.

Further doubts over the availability of Michael Vaughan and John Crawley has led England to draft Paul Collingwood into the squad for Perth. Vaughan is on painkillers after being struck on the shoulder by a bouncer from Jason Gillespie at Adelaide, but is expected to be fit for the match. Crawley's chances of making it are much slimmer though – the blow he received on the hip in a tour match against Australia A has caused swelling, and he hasn't played for more than a week.

Fletcher admitted that Crawley was the greater worry. "We are concerned about Crawley and Vaughan for Perth. Especially Crawley, he doesn't look too good. Vaughan has got slight discomfort but we are still pretty hopeful about him playing. We've called in Collingwood, who is flying from Melbourne. He's playing grade cricket there and is flying in to provide back-up for the batters."

And as if the injury list was not deep enough, England have put Worcestershire's offspinner, Gareth Batty, on stand-by to replace Ashley Giles, even though Batty himself must first pass a fitness test on an injured shoulder. You couldn't make it up.

November 29 will also be an important day for Simon Jones: he'll undergo an operation for the ruptured ligaments on his right knee – an injury he sustained on the first day of the first Test, and one which could keep him out of first-class cricket for as long as 10 months.

What is your say on England's injury woes? Click here to send us your feedback

© Wisden CricInfo Ltd