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

The English opener Crawley has indicated he was not familiar with statements from captain Stokes regarding the dressing room not being "weak men".

The all-rounder delivered this message in several interviews following England's loss in the second Ashes series against the Australians previously.

In the lead-up to the Adelaide Test, where the visitors are staring at a series loss with a match to spare, the captain stated he had allowed his sentiment to "circulate freely" within the playing group.

"I've done the necessary discussions in recent days that I required," said Stokes.

However, following Crawley made 85 on the penultimate day in the third Test, he stated: "I missed those remarks."

"I didn't see and wasn't really looking out for it. Our approach is to take everything that is said in the press with some skepticism," Crawley continued.

Frank Discussions and Steady Philosophy

The captain made the "fragile individuals" observation after his side were beaten in Brisbane to fall 2-0 down.

The England squad afterwards took a holiday to a Queensland resort in the gap between the second and the upcoming matches.

Prior to this match, Stokes said his players had held "raw" talks and he had asked them to "show a bit of dog" in their effort to remain in contention in the Ashes battle.

Yet, Crawley stated the messaging from Stokes and coach Brendon McCullum had remained consistent with their previous three years in leadership.

"The atmosphere has been very positive, the same as always," said the opener. "It's on maintaining positivity, playing our brand, with lots of freedom. It felt like we were capable of something special going into this Test."

Australia On the Verge of Historic Ashes Triumph

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

Lyon's triple strike in a short spell – including the wickets of Harry Brook and Ben Stokes – meant the chasing side six down for 207 in pursuit of a notional total of 435.

This means, Australia require four wickets on Sunday's last day to secure an insurmountable 3-0 advantage after three Tests.

Defeat will extend England's winless run in this country to 18 Tests and condemn them to a fourth straight overseas Ashes series defeat.

This series will be completed in only eleven days of cricket – after England fell the first two Tests in two and four days respectively.

Not since 1921, when Australia completed a series win in the UK in eight days, has the outcome of the Ashes urn been decided so quickly. The hosts have also triumphed in eleven days on two other occasions in the modern era.

"This is disappointing," said the batsman. "Our goal was to win the Ashes and now we are facing elimination at this point."

"There remains significant pride at stake and we'll definitely view it like that," he continued.

"The challenge has been difficult. Australia is a formidable team. It was always going to be hard touring here to face them. They were the favourites and have demonstrated their quality."

Ollie Pope's Position Under Scrutiny

While Crawley's innings in Adelaide probably answers questions about his immediate future in the England team, Pope appears under immense pressure for his position in the Melbourne Test starting December 26th.

The Surrey batsman was out for 17 runs in the team's second knock on day four, adding to his modest returns against Australia.

Across sixteen Ashes knocks, the Surrey man has never made a half-century and boasts an average of 17.62.

A solitary other England player since 1900 – Amiss – has featured as many times in the top six in Ashes Tests and recorded a poorer average.

However, Crawley insisted any suggestion Pope is under the microscope originates with "the media" – referring to the journalists – "not inside the camp."

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

"He has played several excellent innings. This is talk externally. There is no discussion like that on Ollie amongst the players," Crawley finished.