Zak Crawley Claims Ignorance of Captain Stokes' Controversial 'Weak Men' Comments

The English opener Crawley suggested he was not familiar with statements from captain Ben Stokes regarding the team environment as no place for "those lacking fortitude".

The all-rounder made those words in several interviews following his team's defeat in the second Ashes series versus the Australians earlier this month.

In the lead-up to the third Test, where England now face defeat at the earliest opportunity, the captain noted he had allowed his sentiment to "circulate freely" among the playing group.

"I have completed the necessary discussions over the past two days that I needed to have done," remarked the England leader.

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

"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 a pinch of salt," Crawley continued.

Frank Discussions and Consistent Messaging

The captain made the "weak men" comment after England were beaten in the second Test to fall 2-0 down.

The England squad subsequently went on a holiday to a Queensland resort between the second and third matches.

Prior to this match, he revealed his team had held "honest" talks and he had urged them to "display some fight" in their effort to stay in contention in the Ashes battle.

Nevertheless, Crawley asserted the guidance from Stokes and coach McCullum had remained consistent with their prior tenure in charge.

"It's been very positive, unchanged," noted Crawley. "It's 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 On the Verge of Historic Series Victory

Crawley's dismissal late on Saturday came during a crucial triple-strike by Australian spinner Nathan Lyon.

The spinner's three wickets in a short spell – he also bowled Harry Brook and Stokes himself – meant the chasing side six down for 207 in pursuit of a notional target of 435.

This means, Australia need just four more wickets on the last day to secure an unassailable three-nil advantage with three matches played.

Defeat would prolong the English team's winless run in this country to 18 consecutive matches and condemn them to a fourth successive away Ashes series loss.

The current battle is set to be decided in only 11 days of play – after England fell the first two Tests in two and four days respectively.

The last time 1921, when Australia completed victory in England 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," admitted the batsman. "We came here to regain the Ashes and now we are staring down the barrel now."

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

"The challenge has been difficult. They're a very, very good team. It was always going to be tough touring here to face them. They entered as the front-runners coming in to it they've proven why."

Ollie Pope's Place In Question

While Crawley's performance in Adelaide probably answers doubts about his short-term place in the England team, Ollie Pope appears under immense pressure for his position in the Melbourne Test on Boxing Day.

Pope was out for 17 runs in England's second innings on day four, adding to his poor record versus the old enemy.

In 16 Ashes innings, the Surrey man has never made a half-century and boasts an average of just 17.62.

A solitary other English batsman in over a century – Dennis Amiss – has featured an equal number of innings in the top six in the Ashes and returned a poorer average.

But, the opener said any notion his teammate is being scrutinised originates with "the media" – meaning the journalists – "and not within the team."

"The squad is fully aware of his considerable talent," added Crawley. "He has had a productive year to be frank."

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