Zak Crawley Unaware of Captain Stokes' Provocative 'Frail Characters' Remarks

The English opener Zak Crawley has indicated he was not familiar with statements from skipper Stokes about the team environment as no place for "weak men".

The all-rounder delivered this message in multiple conversations in the wake of England's loss in the second Ashes versus Australia previously.

Ahead of the Adelaide Test, where England are staring at a series loss at the earliest opportunity, the captain stated he had allowed his sentiment to "drift around" among the playing group.

"I have completed all the talking in recent days that I required," remarked Stokes.

However, following Crawley scored a knock of 85 on the fourth day in Adelaide, he commented: "I didn't see that."

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

Frank Discussions and Consistent Messaging

Stokes issued his "weak men" comment after England suffered a loss in Brisbane to go 2-0 down.

The England squad afterwards took a break to Noosa in the gap between the second and the upcoming matches.

Before this match, Stokes said his players had held "honest" talks and he had asked them to "display some fight" in their battle to remain alive in the series.

Nevertheless, the Kent batsman asserted the messaging from the captain and head coach McCullum had stayed in line with their previous three years in leadership.

"It's been very positive, unchanged," noted the opener. "The focus is on maintaining positivity, play our way, with lots of freedom. We believed we could do something special entering this Test."

The Hosts Close of Historic Series Victory

Crawley's dismissal late on Saturday was part of a decisive triple-strike by Australia off-spinner Nathan Lyon.

Lyon's three wickets in 20 deliveries – he also bowled Brook and Ben Stokes – meant the chasing side six down for 207 in pursuit of a notional total of 435.

Consequently, the home team need just four more wickets on the final day to secure an unassailable three-nil advantage after three Tests.

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

This series will be completed in only 11 days of cricket – with England losing the first two Tests in rapid time each.

Not since 1921, when the Australians sealed victory in the UK in eight days, has the destination of the Ashes urn been determined so quickly. Australia have also triumphed in eleven days on two other instances in the modern era.

"It's disheartening," admitted the batsman. "Our goal was to regain the Ashes and now we are facing elimination at this point."

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

"The challenge has been tough. They're a very, very good side. It was always going to be tough touring here against them. They were the front-runners coming in to it have demonstrated their quality."

Ollie Pope's Place Under Scrutiny

While Crawley's innings in the third Test likely secures doubts about his short-term place in the side, Ollie Pope appears under immense pressure for his spot in the fourth Test on Boxing Day.

Pope fell for 17 in England's second knock on day four, adding to his modest returns versus Australia.

In 16 Ashes innings, the Surrey man has failed to score a half-century and boasts an average of 17.62.

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

But, Crawley insisted any notion Pope is under the microscope originates with "the media" – meaning the journalists – "not inside the camp."

"We all know how good of a player he is," said Crawley. "Ollie has enjoyed a good year to be frank."

"He has played some really good knocks. It is noise from the outside. There's no chat like that on Ollie in the camp," Crawley finished.