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

The English opener Zak Crawley has indicated he had no knowledge of statements made by captain Stokes about the dressing room as no place for "those lacking fortitude".

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

In the lead-up to the third Test, where the visitors now face defeat with a match to spare, the captain stated he had let his sentiment to "circulate freely" among the squad.

"I've done the necessary discussions in recent days that I needed to have done," said the England leader.

But, following Crawley scored 85 on the fourth day in the third Test, he stated: "I missed those remarks."

"I wasn't actively searching for it. Our approach is to take anything stated in the press with a pinch of salt," he added.

Raw Conversations and Steady Philosophy

The captain issued his "weak men" comment subsequent to his side were beaten in Brisbane to fall two matches behind.

The team afterwards took a holiday to Noosa between the second and the upcoming matches.

Before the Adelaide contest, Stokes said his team had held "raw" conversations and he had urged them to "display some fight" in their effort to stay in contention in the series.

Nevertheless, the Kent batsman asserted the guidance from Stokes and head coach Brendon McCullum had remained consistent with their prior three years in leadership.

"The atmosphere has been extremely upbeat, the same as always," said the opener. "The focus is on maintaining positivity, play our way, with great liberty. It felt like we were capable of something special going into this Test."

The Hosts On the Verge of Rapid Series Victory

Crawley's dismissal late on Saturday came during a decisive three-wicket burst by Australian off-spinner Lyon.

Lyon's triple strike in a short spell – he also bowled Brook and Ben Stokes – left England 207-6 in pursuit of a daunting target of 435 runs.

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

A loss will extend England's drought in Australia to 18 consecutive matches and ensure a fourth successive overseas Ashes series defeat.

This series is set to be decided in just 11 days of cricket – after England fell the first two Tests in two and four days each.

Not since 1921, when Australia sealed victory in the UK in eight days, has the outcome of the urn been determined so quickly. Australia have also won in 11 days on two other instances in the 21st century.

"This is disappointing," said Crawley. "We came here to win the Ashes and we're staring down the barrel now."

"There will still be significant pride at stake and we will definitely view it with that mindset," he continued.

"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."

Pope's Position In Question

Although the opener's performance in Adelaide probably answers doubts about his short-term place in the England team, Ollie Pope looks under threat for his position in the Melbourne Test on Boxing Day.

The Surrey batsman was out for 17 in the team's second innings on Saturday, extending his modest returns versus Australia.

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

Only one other England player in over a century – Amiss – has played as many times in the top order in the Ashes and returned a poorer average.

But, Crawley insisted any notion Pope is being scrutinised comes from "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 productive year if I'm honest."

"He has played some really good knocks. It is noise externally. There's no discussion like that regarding Pope amongst the players," Crawley concluded.