Crawley Claims Ignorance of Stokes' Controversial 'Frail Characters' Comments

England opening batter Zak Crawley suggested he was not familiar with statements made by captain Stokes regarding the dressing room as no place for "weak men".

The all-rounder made those words in multiple conversations following England's loss in the second match of the Ashes series versus the Australians previously.

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

"I've done all the talking in recent days that I required," remarked Stokes.

However, following the opener scored 85 on the fourth day in Adelaide, he stated: "I didn't see that."

"I didn't see and wasn't really looking out for it. We take everything that is said in the media with a pinch of salt," he added.

Frank Discussions and Steady Philosophy

The captain issued his "weak men" observation after England were beaten in the second Test to fall two matches behind.

The England squad afterwards took a holiday to Noosa in the gap between the second and third Tests.

Before this match, Stokes revealed his team had held "raw" talks and he had urged them to "show a bit of dog" in their battle to remain in contention in the Ashes battle.

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

"It's been very positive, unchanged," said Crawley. "The focus is just trying to be optimistic, playing our brand, with great liberty. It felt like we were capable of something special entering this game."

The Hosts Close of Historic Series Victory

The opener's dismissal on day four was part of a decisive three-wicket burst by Australia off-spinner Lyon.

The spinner's triple strike in a short spell – he also bowled Brook and Stokes himself – left England 207-6 in pursuit of a daunting total of 435 runs.

This means, Australia need just four more wickets on the last day to secure an unassailable 3-0 advantage after three matches played.

Defeat will extend the English team's drought in Australia to 18 consecutive matches and condemn them to a fourth successive overseas Ashes series loss.

The current battle will be completed in just 11 days of play – with England losing the first two Tests in two and four days each.

The last time 1921, when Australia completed victory in England in eight days, has the destination of the Ashes urn been determined more swiftly. Australia have also triumphed in 11 days on two other instances in the modern era.

"It's disheartening," admitted the batsman. "We came here to regain the Ashes and we're staring down the barrel at this point."

"There remains significant pride at stake and we will certainly approach it like that," he continued.

"It's been difficult. Australia is a formidable team. It was always going to be hard coming here to face them. They entered as the front-runners coming in to it they've proven why."

Pope's Position Under Scrutiny

While the opener's innings in the third Test probably answers doubts about his short-term future in the England team, Ollie Pope appears under threat for his spot in the Melbourne Test on Boxing Day.

The Surrey batsman fell for 17 runs in England's second innings on Saturday, adding to his poor record against the old enemy.

In 16 Ashes innings, Pope has failed to score a fifty and boasts an average of just 17.62.

A solitary other English batsman since 1900 – Amiss – has featured an equal number of innings in the top six in Ashes Tests and recorded a poorer average.

But, Crawley insisted any notion Pope is under the microscope originates with "you guys" – referring to the journalists – "and not within the team."

"The squad is fully aware how good of a player he is," said Crawley. "He has had a productive year to be frank."

"He has played several excellent innings. It is talk from the outside. There's no discussion like that regarding Pope in the camp," he concluded.