Crawley Claims Ignorance of Captain Stokes' Provocative 'Weak Men' Comments

The English opener Crawley suggested he was not familiar with comments made by captain Ben Stokes regarding the dressing room not being "those lacking fortitude".

Stokes delivered those words in several interviews following England's defeat in the second match of the Ashes series versus Australia earlier this month.

In the lead-up to the Adelaide Test, where England are staring at a series loss at the earliest opportunity, the captain stated he had let his message to "circulate freely" among the playing group.

"I've done the necessary discussions over the past two days that I required," remarked the England leader.

But, after Crawley made a knock of 85 on the fourth day in Adelaide, he commented: "I missed those remarks."

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

Frank Discussions and Consistent Messaging

The captain made the "weak men" observation subsequent to England were beaten 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.

Prior to the Adelaide contest, he revealed his team had held "raw" talks and he had asked them to "display some fight" in their battle to remain alive in the series.

Nevertheless, Crawley asserted the guidance from the captain and head coach Brendon McCullum had remained consistent with their previous tenure in charge.

"The atmosphere has been very positive, unchanged," noted the opener. "The focus is on maintaining positivity, playing our brand, with great liberty. It felt like we were capable of something special going into this game."

Australia On the Verge of Historic Ashes Triumph

The opener's wicket on day four came during a crucial three-wicket burst by Australian off-spinner Lyon.

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

This means, the home team need four wickets on the last day to move to an insurmountable 3-0 lead after three Tests.

A loss would prolong the English team's winless run in this country to 18 Tests and condemn them to a fourth straight overseas Ashes series loss.

This series is set to be decided in only 11 days of play – with England fell the initial matches in two and four days respectively.

Not since 1921, when Australia completed victory in England in eight days, has the destination of the Ashes urn been determined more swiftly. Australia have also won in 11 days on two other occasions in the 21st century.

"It's disappointing," admitted the batsman. "Our goal was to win the Ashes and we're facing elimination now."

"There will still be plenty to play for and we'll definitely view it with that mindset," Crawley added.

"It's been tough. Australia is a very, very good side. It was always going to be hard touring here to face them. They entered as the front-runners coming in to it they've proven why."

Pope's Place Under Scrutiny

Although the opener's performance in Adelaide likely secures questions about his short-term future in the England team, Ollie Pope looks under threat for his position in the Melbourne Test on Boxing Day.

Pope fell for 17 runs in the team's second innings on Saturday, adding to his modest returns versus the old enemy.

Across 16 Ashes innings, Pope has never made a fifty and boasts an average of 17.62.

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

However, Crawley insisted any suggestion his teammate is being scrutinised comes from "you guys" – meaning the press – "not inside the camp."

"The squad is fully aware of his considerable talent," added he. "He has had a good year if I'm honest."

"He has played some really good knocks. This is talk externally. There is no chat of that nature on Ollie in the camp," he finished.