Zak Crawley Unaware of Stokes' Provocative 'Weak Men' Comments

The English opener Crawley has indicated he had no knowledge of comments from skipper Stokes about the dressing room not being "those lacking fortitude".

The all-rounder made this message in several interviews in the wake of England's defeat in the second match of the Ashes versus Australia previously.

In the lead-up to the Adelaide Test, where England are staring at defeat with a match to spare, Stokes noted he had allowed his sentiment to "drift around" among the squad.

"I've done all the talking over the past two days that I required," remarked the England leader.

But, following the opener made a knock of 85 on the fourth day in the third Test, he commented: "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 media with some skepticism," Crawley continued.

Frank Discussions and Consistent Messaging

Stokes issued his "weak men" observation subsequent to England suffered a loss in Brisbane to go two matches behind.

The team subsequently took a break to a Queensland resort between the second and the upcoming Tests.

Before this match, Stokes revealed his team had held "raw" talks and he had asked them to "display some fight" in their battle to stay alive in the series.

Nevertheless, Crawley asserted the guidance from Stokes and coach Brendon McCullum had remained consistent with their previous tenure in leadership.

"The atmosphere has been extremely upbeat, the same as always," said Crawley. "It's just trying to be optimistic, playing our brand, with great liberty. It felt like we were capable of an extraordinary feat entering this Test."

Australia Close of Rapid Series Victory

Crawley's dismissal late on Saturday was part of a crucial triple-strike by Australia off-spinner Lyon.

The spinner's three wickets in a short spell – he also bowled Harry Brook and Ben Stokes – meant England six down for 207 in pursuit of a notional total of 435 runs.

Consequently, Australia require just four more wickets on Sunday's final day to secure an insurmountable 3-0 advantage with three matches played.

A loss would prolong England's drought in this country to 18 Tests and condemn them to a fourth straight away Ashes series loss.

The current battle is set to be decided in only eleven days of cricket – with England fell the first two Tests in rapid time respectively.

The last time 1921, when Australia completed victory in the UK in eight days, has the destination of the urn been determined more swiftly. The hosts have also triumphed in eleven days on two other occasions in the 21st century.

"It's disheartening," admitted the batsman. "Our goal was to win the Ashes and we're facing elimination at this point."

"There will still be significant pride at stake and we'll certainly approach it like that," Crawley added.

"It's been tough. They're a formidable side. It was inevitably tough coming here against them. They were the favourites and have demonstrated their quality."

Ollie Pope's Position Under Scrutiny

Although Crawley's innings in the third Test probably answers questions about his immediate place in the side, Ollie Pope appears under immense pressure for his spot in the Melbourne Test on Boxing Day.

Pope was out for 17 runs in the team's second knock on day four, extending his poor record against the old enemy.

Across 16 Ashes innings, the Surrey man has failed to score a fifty and averages 17.62.

Only one other English batsman since 1900 – Amiss – has featured as many times in the top six in Ashes Tests and returned a poorer average.

But, the opener insisted any notion Pope is under the microscope comes from "the media" – meaning the press – "not inside the camp."

"We all know of his considerable talent," said he. "He has had a good year to be frank."

"He has played some really good knocks. It is talk externally. There's no chat like that on Ollie in the camp," he finished.