Zak Crawley Claims Ignorance of Captain Stokes' Provocative 'Weak Men' Remarks

The English opening batter Crawley has indicated he had no knowledge of comments made by captain Stokes about the dressing room not being "weak men".

The all-rounder delivered this message in multiple interviews in the wake of his team's defeat in the second match of the Ashes versus the Australians earlier this month.

Ahead of the third Test, where the visitors now face defeat with a match to spare, Stokes noted he had let his sentiment to "drift around" among the playing group.

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

However, following the opener made 85 on the fourth day in the third Test, he stated: "I missed those remarks."

"I wasn't actively searching for it. We take anything stated in the media with a pinch of salt," he added.

Raw Conversations and Steady Philosophy

The captain made the "weak men" observation after England were beaten in Brisbane to go two matches behind.

The England squad afterwards took a holiday to a Queensland resort between the second and third Tests.

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

Yet, the Kent batsman asserted the messaging from the captain and head coach Brendon McCullum had remained in line with their prior three years in charge.

"The atmosphere has been very positive, the same as always," said Crawley. "The focus is just trying to be optimistic, play our way, with great liberty. We believed we could do an extraordinary feat entering this Test."

Australia On the Verge of Historic Ashes Triumph

The opener's wicket late on Saturday was part of a decisive three-wicket burst by Australia off-spinner Nathan Lyon.

Lyon's three wickets in 20 deliveries – he also bowled Harry Brook and Ben Stokes – meant England 207-6 chasing a daunting target of 435 runs.

This means, the home team require just four more wickets on Sunday's last day to move to an unassailable 3-0 lead with three Tests.

A loss will extend England's drought in this country to 18 Tests and condemn them to a fourth successive away Ashes series loss.

The current battle is set to be decided in only 11 days of cricket – after England fell the initial matches in two and four days respectively.

The last time 1921, when the Australians completed a series win in England in eight days, has the destination of the urn been determined so quickly. The hosts have also won in eleven days on two other occasions in the modern era.

"This is disheartening," said the batsman. "We came here to regain the Ashes and now we are staring down the barrel at this point."

"There remains plenty to play for and we'll definitely view it with that mindset," he continued.

"The challenge has been difficult. Australia is a very, very good side. It was always going to be hard touring here against them. They were the favourites coming in to it they've proven why."

Ollie Pope's Place In Question

While the opener's innings in Adelaide likely secures doubts about his immediate place in the side, Pope appears under immense pressure for his position in the Melbourne Test on Boxing Day.

Pope was out for 17 runs in the team's second knock on day four, extending his poor record against the old enemy.

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

Only one other England player since 1900 – Dennis Amiss – has featured as many times in the top order in the Ashes and returned a poorer average.

However, Crawley said any notion his teammate is being scrutinised originates with "the media" – referring to the press – "and not within the team."

"We all know of his considerable talent," added Crawley. "Ollie has enjoyed a productive year to be frank."

"He has played some really good knocks. This is noise externally. There's no chat like that regarding Pope in the camp," he finished.