Crawley Claims Ignorance of Captain Stokes' Provocative 'Weak Men' Remarks

The English opener Zak Crawley has indicated he had no knowledge of statements from captain Stokes about the team environment not being "those lacking fortitude".

Stokes made those words in multiple interviews in the wake of England's defeat in the second Ashes against Australia previously.

In the lead-up to the Adelaide Test, where the visitors are staring at a series loss at the earliest opportunity, Stokes noted he had let his message to "drift around" within the squad.

"I have completed the necessary discussions over the past two days that I required," said the England leader.

However, after Crawley scored 85 on the penultimate day in Adelaide, he stated: "I missed those remarks."

"I didn't see and wasn't really looking out for it. Our approach is to take anything stated in the media with some skepticism," Crawley continued.

Raw Conversations and Steady Philosophy

Stokes issued his "fragile individuals" observation after his side were beaten in the second Test to fall 2-0 down.

The team subsequently took a break to a Queensland resort in the gap between the second and the upcoming matches.

Prior to this match, he said his team had held "raw" conversations and he had urged them to "display some fight" in their effort to remain in contention in the Ashes battle.

Yet, Crawley stated the messaging from the captain and coach McCullum had remained in line with their prior tenure in leadership.

"The atmosphere has been very positive, unchanged," noted Crawley. "The focus is on maintaining positivity, play our way, with lots of freedom. It felt like we were capable of an extraordinary feat going into this Test."

Australia Close of Rapid Series Victory

Crawley's dismissal on day four was part of a crucial triple-strike by Australian spinner Nathan Lyon.

The spinner's three wickets in a short spell – he also bowled Brook and Stokes himself – meant England 207-6 in pursuit of a notional total of 435.

This means, Australia require just four more wickets on the last day to move to an unassailable 3-0 advantage with three matches played.

Defeat would prolong England's winless run in Australia to 18 consecutive matches and ensure a fourth successive overseas Ashes series loss.

This series will be completed in just 11 days of play – after England fell the initial matches in two and four days each.

The last time 1921, when the Australians completed victory in the UK in eight days, has the destination of the urn been determined so quickly. Australia have also won in eleven days on two other occasions in the 21st century.

"It's disheartening," said the batsman. "Our goal was to win the Ashes and we're staring down the barrel now."

"There remains significant pride at stake and we will certainly approach it with that mindset," he continued.

"The challenge has been tough. They're a formidable team. It was inevitably tough coming here against them. They entered as the front-runners and have demonstrated their quality."

Pope's Position Under Scrutiny

While the opener's innings in Adelaide probably answers doubts about his short-term place in the England team, Ollie Pope appears under threat for his spot in the fourth Test on Boxing Day.

The Surrey batsman fell for 17 in England's second knock on day four, adding to his poor record against Australia.

In 16 Ashes innings, the Surrey man has failed to score a half-century and averages just 17.62.

A solitary other English batsman in over a century – Dennis Amiss – has played an equal number of innings in the top order in Ashes Tests and returned a lower average.

But, the opener insisted any suggestion Pope is being scrutinised originates with "you guys" – meaning the journalists – "not inside the camp."

"The squad is fully aware of his considerable talent," added he. "He has had a good year if I'm honest."

"He has played some really good knocks. This is talk externally. There's no discussion of that nature on Ollie in the camp," Crawley concluded.