Crawley Unaware of Captain Stokes' Provocative 'Frail Characters' Comments

The English opener Zak Crawley has indicated he had no knowledge of statements made by captain Ben Stokes about the dressing room not being "weak men".

The all-rounder delivered those words in multiple interviews in the wake of his team's loss in the second match of the Ashes series versus Australia previously.

Ahead of the third Test, where the visitors now face a series loss with a match to spare, Stokes stated he had let his message to "circulate freely" within the playing group.

"I have completed the necessary discussions in recent days that I required," said Stokes.

But, after Crawley made a knock of 85 on the penultimate day in the third Test, he commented: "I didn't see that."

"I wasn't actively searching for it. We take anything stated in the media with some skepticism," he added.

Raw Conversations and Consistent Messaging

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

The team afterwards went on a holiday to a Queensland resort in the gap between the second and the upcoming matches.

Prior to the Adelaide contest, he said his team had held "honest" conversations and he had asked them to "display some fight" in their effort to stay alive in the series.

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

"It's been extremely upbeat, unchanged," said the opener. "The focus is just trying to be optimistic, play our way, with lots of freedom. We believed we were capable of something special going into this game."

Australia Close of Rapid Ashes Triumph

Crawley's dismissal on day four came during a crucial triple-strike by Australia off-spinner Nathan Lyon.

The spinner's three wickets in a short spell – including the wickets of Brook and Stokes himself – left England six down for 207 in pursuit of a notional target of 435 runs.

Consequently, Australia require four wickets on Sunday's final day to secure an unassailable 3-0 advantage with three Tests.

Defeat will extend the English team's drought in this country to 18 Tests and condemn them to a fourth successive away Ashes series defeat.

The current battle is set to be decided in only eleven days of play – after England losing the first two Tests in two and four days each.

The last time 1921, when the Australians completed a series win in the UK in eight days, has the outcome of the urn been decided so quickly. Australia have also triumphed in eleven days on two other instances in the modern era.

"This is disheartening," said Crawley. "Our goal was to regain the Ashes and now we are staring down the barrel now."

"There remains plenty to play for and we'll definitely view it like that," Crawley added.

"The challenge has been difficult. They're a very, very good side. It was inevitably hard coming here against them. They entered as the front-runners coming in to it they've proven why."

Pope's Place Under Scrutiny

Although Crawley's performance in the third Test probably answers doubts about his immediate place in the England team, Pope looks under immense pressure for his spot in the fourth Test on Boxing Day.

Pope was out for 17 runs in England's second innings on day four, adding to his modest returns against the old enemy.

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

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

But, the opener insisted any suggestion his teammate is under the microscope originates with "the media" – meaning the journalists – "not inside the camp."

"The squad is fully aware of his considerable talent," added Crawley. "Ollie has enjoyed a good year if I'm honest."

"He has produced some really good knocks. This is noise externally. There is no discussion like that on Ollie in the camp," he finished.