Crawley Claims Ignorance of Captain Stokes' Provocative 'Weak Men' Comments
England opening batter Zak Crawley suggested he had no knowledge of comments from skipper Stokes regarding the team environment as no place for "weak men".
The all-rounder delivered this message in several conversations following England's loss in the second match of the Ashes series versus Australia previously.
Ahead of the Adelaide Test, where England now face defeat at the earliest opportunity, Stokes noted he had let his message to "circulate freely" among the squad.
"I've done the necessary discussions over the past two days that I needed to have done," said the England leader.
But, following the opener made a knock of 85 on the fourth day in the third Test, he commented: "I didn't see that."
"I wasn't actively searching for it. We take everything that is said in the press with a pinch of salt," Crawley continued.
Raw Conversations and Steady Philosophy
The captain issued his "fragile individuals" observation after England suffered a loss in the second Test to go 2-0 down.
The England squad subsequently went on a break to a Queensland resort in the gap between the second and the upcoming Tests.
Before this match, Stokes revealed his players had held "honest" conversations and he had asked them to "show a bit of dog" in their effort to stay alive in the series.
Yet, the Kent batsman asserted the guidance from the captain and head coach Brendon McCullum had remained in line with their prior three years in charge.
"It's been extremely upbeat, unchanged," noted Crawley. "It's just trying to be optimistic, play our way, with great liberty. We believed we could do something special entering this Test."
The Hosts On the Verge of Historic Ashes Triumph
The opener's dismissal late on Saturday was part of a crucial three-wicket burst by Australia off-spinner Nathan Lyon.
The spinner's triple strike in 20 deliveries – including the wickets of Harry Brook and Ben Stokes – left the chasing side six down for 207 chasing a notional total of 435 runs.
This means, Australia need four wickets on the last day to secure an unassailable 3-0 lead after three Tests.
A loss would prolong England's drought in Australia to 18 consecutive matches and ensure a fourth straight overseas Ashes defeat.
This series is set to be decided in only eleven days of cricket – with England losing the initial matches in two and four days respectively.
The last time 1921, when Australia sealed a series win in England in eight days, has the destination of the urn been determined more swiftly. Australia have also won in eleven days on two other instances in the 21st century.
"This is disappointing," admitted Crawley. "We came here to win the Ashes and we're facing elimination at this point."
"There remains plenty to play for and we'll certainly approach it like that," Crawley added.
"The challenge has been tough. Australia is a formidable team. It was inevitably hard touring here to face them. They entered as the favourites and have demonstrated their quality."
Ollie Pope's Position In Question
While Crawley's performance in Adelaide likely secures doubts about his immediate future in the England team, Ollie Pope appears under immense pressure for his spot in the Melbourne Test starting December 26th.
The Surrey batsman fell for 17 runs in the team's second innings on day four, extending his modest returns versus the old enemy.
Across sixteen Ashes knocks, the Surrey man has never made a half-century and boasts an average of just 17.62.
Only one other English batsman in over a century – Amiss – has played as many times in the top six in Ashes Tests and returned a lower average.
But, the opener insisted any suggestion Pope is under the microscope comes from "the media" – meaning the journalists – "not inside the camp."
"We all know of his considerable talent," said Crawley. "He has had a good year to be frank."
"He has produced some really good knocks. This is talk from the outside. There is no discussion like that on Ollie amongst the players," Crawley concluded.
