Zak Crawley Claims Ignorance of Captain Stokes' Provocative 'Frail Characters' Remarks

The English opening batter Zak Crawley has indicated he had no knowledge of comments from skipper Stokes about the dressing room as no place for "weak men".

Stokes made this message in multiple interviews in the wake of his team's loss in the second Ashes series against the Australians previously.

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

"I have completed all the talking over the past two days that I required," said the England leader.

However, after Crawley scored a knock of 85 on the penultimate day in Adelaide, he stated: "I didn't see that."

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

Frank Discussions and Steady Philosophy

The captain issued his "fragile individuals" comment subsequent to his side were beaten in the second Test to go 2-0 down.

The England squad subsequently took a holiday to Noosa in the gap between the second and third Tests.

Before the Adelaide contest, he said his players had held "raw" conversations and he had asked them to "show a bit of dog" in their battle to stay in contention in the series.

Yet, the Kent batsman stated the messaging from Stokes and head coach Brendon McCullum had remained in line with their previous tenure in leadership.

"The atmosphere has been extremely upbeat, unchanged," noted Crawley. "It's on maintaining positivity, play our way, with great liberty. It felt like we were capable of something special entering this Test."

Australia Close of Rapid Series Victory

The opener's wicket on day four was part of a crucial three-wicket burst by Australian spinner Nathan Lyon.

Lyon's triple strike in a short spell – he also bowled Harry Brook and Ben Stokes – meant England 207-6 in pursuit of a notional target of 435.

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

Defeat would prolong England's winless run in Australia to 18 Tests and ensure a fourth straight away Ashes defeat.

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

The last time 1921, when the Australians completed victory in the UK in eight days, has the destination of the Ashes urn been determined so quickly. Australia have also won in eleven days on two other instances in the modern era.

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

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

"The challenge has been tough. Australia is a formidable team. It was always going to be hard touring here against them. They were the front-runners coming in to it have demonstrated their quality."

Pope's Place Under Scrutiny

Although Crawley's innings in Adelaide likely secures questions about his immediate place in the England team, Ollie Pope appears under threat for his spot in the fourth Test starting December 26th.

Pope was out for 17 in England's second knock on Saturday, extending his modest returns versus the old enemy.

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

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

But, Crawley insisted any suggestion Pope is being scrutinised comes from "you guys" – meaning the press – "and not within the team."

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

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