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

England opener Crawley has indicated he was not familiar with statements made by captain Ben Stokes regarding the dressing room as no place for "weak men".

Stokes delivered this message in several conversations following England's defeat in the second Ashes against the Australians previously.

In the lead-up to the Adelaide Test, where England now face a series loss with a match to spare, the captain stated he had allowed his sentiment to "circulate freely" within the playing group.

"I have completed the necessary discussions in recent days that I needed to have done," said Stokes.

However, following the opener scored a knock of 85 on the fourth day in the third Test, he commented: "I missed those remarks."

"I wasn't actively searching for it. We take anything stated in the media with some skepticism," he added.

Raw Conversations and Steady Philosophy

The captain issued his "weak men" observation subsequent to England were beaten in Brisbane to fall two matches behind.

The team afterwards went on a holiday to Noosa in the gap between the second and third Tests.

Prior to this match, he revealed his players had held "raw" talks and he had urged them to "show a bit of dog" in their effort to stay in contention in the series.

Nevertheless, the Kent batsman stated the guidance from Stokes and coach McCullum had stayed consistent with their prior three years in charge.

"It's been very positive, unchanged," said the opener. "The focus is just trying to be optimistic, playing our brand, with lots of freedom. It felt like we could do something special going into this game."

The Hosts Close of Rapid Series Victory

The opener's dismissal on day four came during a decisive triple-strike by Australia spinner Lyon.

Lyon's triple strike in a short spell – he also bowled Harry Brook and Stokes himself – left the chasing side 207-6 in pursuit of a daunting target of 435.

This means, Australia require just four more wickets on the final day to secure an insurmountable three-nil lead after three Tests.

A loss will extend the English team's winless run in this country to 18 Tests and ensure a fourth straight away Ashes series defeat.

The current battle will be completed in only eleven days of cricket – with England losing the first two Tests in rapid time each.

Not since 1921, when Australia completed a series win in England in eight days, has the outcome of the urn been decided so quickly. The hosts have also triumphed in eleven days on two other occasions in the 21st century.

"This is disappointing," admitted the batsman. "Our goal was to regain the Ashes and now we are staring down the barrel now."

"There remains plenty to play for and we will certainly approach it like that," Crawley added.

"It's been difficult. Australia is a very, very good team. It was inevitably tough touring here to face them. They entered as the favourites and they've proven why."

Pope's Position Under Scrutiny

Although Crawley's innings in the third Test probably answers questions about his immediate future in the England team, Ollie Pope looks under threat for his position in the fourth Test starting December 26th.

The Surrey batsman was out for 17 runs in the team's second knock on Saturday, adding to his poor record versus the old enemy.

In 16 Ashes innings, Pope has never made a half-century and averages 17.62.

Only one other England player in over a century – Amiss – has featured as many times in the top order in the Ashes and returned a lower average.

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

"We all know of his considerable talent," said Crawley. "Ollie has enjoyed a productive year if I'm honest."

"He has played some really good knocks. It is noise externally. There is no chat like that regarding Pope amongst the players," Crawley concluded.