Crawley Claims Ignorance of Stokes' Controversial 'Weak Men' Remarks
England opening batter Zak Crawley suggested he had no knowledge of statements made by captain Ben Stokes regarding the dressing room as no place for "those lacking fortitude".
The all-rounder made those words in multiple conversations following his team's defeat in the second match of the Ashes against Australia earlier this month.
Ahead of the third Test, where England are staring at a series loss at the earliest opportunity, Stokes noted he had allowed his sentiment to "circulate freely" among the playing group.
"I have completed the necessary discussions in recent days that I needed to have done," said the England leader.
But, after the opener made 85 on the penultimate day in Adelaide, he commented: "I didn't see that."
"I didn't see and wasn't really looking out for it. We take anything stated in the press with some skepticism," Crawley continued.
Raw Conversations and Steady Philosophy
The captain made the "weak men" observation subsequent to England were beaten in the second Test to fall two matches behind.
The team afterwards went on a break to a Queensland resort in the gap between the second and third Tests.
Before the Adelaide contest, he said his team had held "honest" talks and he had asked them to "display some fight" in their battle to stay alive in the series.
Yet, Crawley stated the messaging from the captain and coach McCullum had remained consistent with their prior tenure in leadership.
"It's been extremely upbeat, unchanged," noted the opener. "The focus is just trying to be optimistic, playing our brand, with lots of freedom. We believed we were capable of something special entering this game."
Australia On the Verge of Historic Series Victory
The opener's dismissal on day four came during a crucial triple-strike by Australia spinner Nathan Lyon.
Lyon's three wickets in a short spell – he also bowled Brook and Stokes himself – meant the chasing side six down for 207 in pursuit of a notional total of 435 runs.
This means, the home team need four wickets on the last day to secure an unassailable 3-0 lead with three matches played.
Defeat would prolong England's winless run in this country to 18 Tests and condemn them to a fourth successive overseas Ashes series defeat.
The current battle is set to be decided in only 11 days of play – after England losing the initial matches in rapid time each.
The last time 1921, when Australia completed a series win 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.
"It's disheartening," said the batsman. "Our goal was to win the Ashes and now we are facing elimination at this point."
"There remains significant pride at stake and we will definitely view it with that mindset," he continued.
"The challenge has been difficult. They're a formidable side. It was always going to be tough touring here to face them. They were the front-runners and have demonstrated their quality."
Ollie Pope's Position In Question
Although the opener's performance in Adelaide probably answers doubts about his short-term place in the side, Ollie Pope appears under immense pressure for his spot in the Melbourne Test on Boxing Day.
Pope fell for 17 runs in England's second innings on Saturday, extending his poor record against Australia.
Across 16 Ashes innings, the Surrey man has never made a half-century and boasts an average of just 17.62.
Only one other England player since 1900 – Amiss – has played an equal number of innings in the top order in Ashes Tests and recorded a poorer average.
However, Crawley insisted any suggestion Pope is under the microscope originates with "you guys" – referring to the press – "not inside the camp."
"We all know of his considerable talent," said he. "Ollie has enjoyed a good year to be frank."
"He has produced some really good knocks. This is noise externally. There is no discussion of that nature on Ollie amongst the players," Crawley concluded.
