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

England opener Crawley suggested he had no knowledge of statements made by skipper Ben Stokes about the dressing room not being "weak men".

The all-rounder made this message in multiple interviews following his team's loss in the second Ashes against Australia earlier this month.

Ahead of the third Test, where England are staring at a series loss with a match to spare, the captain noted he had allowed his message to "drift around" within the playing group.

"I've done all the talking over the past two days that I needed to have done," said Stokes.

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

"I didn't see and wasn't really looking out for it. Our approach is to take everything that is said in the media with some skepticism," Crawley continued.

Frank Discussions and Consistent Messaging

The captain issued his "weak men" observation after England were beaten in the second Test to fall 2-0 down.

The England squad afterwards went on a holiday to a Queensland resort in the gap between the second and the upcoming matches.

Before this match, Stokes said his team had held "raw" conversations and he had urged them to "display some fight" in their battle to remain alive in the Ashes battle.

Yet, Crawley stated the guidance from the captain and coach Brendon McCullum had remained in line with their previous tenure in charge.

"It's been extremely upbeat, unchanged," said the opener. "The focus is just trying to be optimistic, play our way, with great liberty. We believed we were capable of an extraordinary feat entering this game."

The Hosts Close of Historic Series Victory

Crawley's dismissal late on Saturday came during a crucial triple-strike by Australian off-spinner Lyon.

Lyon's three wickets in a short spell – he also bowled Harry Brook and Stokes himself – left England six down for 207 in pursuit of a daunting target of 435 runs.

This means, Australia need just four more wickets on Sunday's last day to move to an unassailable three-nil lead after three matches played.

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

This series is set to be decided in just 11 days of cricket – after England fell the initial matches in rapid time respectively.

Not since 1921, when Australia sealed a series win in England in eight days, has the destination of the urn been determined so quickly. Australia have also triumphed in eleven days on two other occasions in the modern era.

"This is disheartening," admitted Crawley. "We came here to win the Ashes and we're staring down the barrel at this point."

"There remains significant pride at stake and we will definitely view it with that mindset," Crawley added.

"It's been tough. Australia is a formidable side. It was always going to be tough coming here against them. They entered as the favourites coming in to it have demonstrated their quality."

Ollie Pope's Place Under Scrutiny

Although Crawley's performance in Adelaide likely secures doubts about his immediate place in the England team, Pope appears under immense pressure for his spot in the fourth Test starting December 26th.

Pope fell for 17 in England's second knock on day four, adding to his poor record against the old enemy.

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

Only one other England player in over a century – Dennis Amiss – has played an equal number of innings in the top six in the Ashes and returned a lower average.

However, Crawley said any notion his teammate is under the microscope comes from "you guys" – meaning the press – "not inside the camp."

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

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