PERTH, AUSTRALIA - DECEMBER 18: Steve Smith and David Warner of Australia celebrate in the changerooms after Australia regained the Ashes during day five of the Third Test match during the 2017/18 Ashes Series between Australia and England at WACA on December 18, 2017 in Perth, Australia. (Photo by Ryan Pierse/Getty Images)

With the Ashes against old foe England and WTC final just around the corner, the Australian selectors will have difficulty figuring out who deserves to be in the starting XI.

While some like Pat Cummins and Steve Smith are automatic selections in the squad, Australian selectors have come out and revealed that veteran opener David Warner won't be guaranteed a spot in the team.

Although Warner has scored over 8,000 test runs in his career, with 25 centuries and an average of 45.57, the veteran opener has struggled to find consistency during the last Ashes series.

This saw Warner end the series with a disappointing average of 9.50.

Now, the man most likely to replace Warner and accompany Usman Khawaja at the top of the batting order has spoken out, revealing that the New South Welshman should be able to retire on his own terms.

"My opinion with Dave is that I think he's one of, if not the, greatest openers that Australia's ever had. I think he's sort of earned the right to go out the way he wants to go out," Harris said to Code Sports.

"So whether or not that's during the Ashes or whether it's in a home summer, I think he's earnt the right to do that."

"I do see bits and pieces of it. To be honest, I'm probably not going to be playing until Davey either isn't playing or decides not to be playing."

Australian batsman David Warner leaps in the air as he celebrates his century against Pakistan on the third day of the second cricket Test match in Melbourne on December 28, 2016. WILLIAM WEST/AFP/Getty Images

If Warner is dropped from the starting XI, Harris will have to contend with Matthew Renshaw for his top-order slot, with both the Victorian representative and the Queenslander selected in the Aussie squad for the Ashes and WTC Final.

Earlier last month, Chief of Selectors George Bailey stated that while Warner was a likely starter for the WTC Final, it was a different story for the Ashes.

"The way we're sort of looking at that is it's the culmination of what's been a pretty consistent two years for a bunch of guys," Bailey said via Code Sports.

"Fundamentally it's been a pretty similar team for a long period of time. So we're confident that's a team and that's a make-up that can have success."

"(However, the Ashes is) different opposition, different surface. We'll work through that."