Zak Crawley Claims Ignorance of Captain Stokes' Controversial 'Weak Men' Remarks

The English opening batter Crawley suggested he was not familiar with statements made by captain Stokes regarding the dressing room not being "those lacking fortitude".

The all-rounder delivered those words in multiple interviews in the wake of England's loss in the second Ashes series versus the Australians earlier this month.

In the lead-up to the third Test, where the visitors are staring at a series loss with a match to spare, Stokes noted 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 Stokes.

However, following Crawley scored 85 on the penultimate day in Adelaide, he stated: "I missed those remarks."

"I didn't see and wasn't really looking out for it. Our approach is to take anything stated in the media with a pinch of salt," he added.

Raw Conversations and Steady Philosophy

Stokes issued his "weak men" comment after England were beaten in Brisbane to go 2-0 down.

The team subsequently took 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 urged them to "display some fight" in their battle to stay in contention in the series.

Nevertheless, the Kent batsman stated the guidance from the captain and head coach Brendon McCullum had stayed consistent with their previous three years in leadership.

"The atmosphere has been very positive, the same as always," noted the opener. "It's on maintaining positivity, playing our brand, with lots of freedom. It felt like we were capable of something special going into this game."

The Hosts On the Verge of Historic Series Victory

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

The spinner's triple strike in 20 deliveries – he also bowled Brook and Ben Stokes – meant England 207-6 chasing a daunting total of 435 runs.

Consequently, the home team need four wickets on the last day to move to an unassailable 3-0 advantage after three matches played.

Defeat will extend the English team's winless run in this country to 18 Tests and ensure a fourth successive overseas Ashes series loss.

This series is set to be decided in only eleven days of play – after England fell the first two Tests in rapid time each.

Not since 1921, when Australia sealed victory in England in eight days, has the destination of the Ashes urn been determined so quickly. The hosts have also won in 11 days on two other occasions in the 21st century.

"It's disheartening," admitted Crawley. "Our goal was to regain the Ashes and now we are staring down the barrel now."

"There will still be significant pride at stake and we will definitely view it like that," Crawley added.

"It's been tough. They're a formidable team. It was inevitably tough coming here to face them. They entered as the front-runners coming in to it have demonstrated their quality."

Pope's Place Under Scrutiny

While the opener's innings in Adelaide likely secures doubts about his short-term future in the side, Ollie Pope appears under immense pressure for his spot in the Melbourne Test on Boxing Day.

Pope was out for 17 in England's second knock on Saturday, adding to his poor record against the old enemy.

Across sixteen Ashes knocks, the Surrey man has failed to score a half-century and averages just 17.62.

Only one other English batsman in over a century – Amiss – has played an equal number of innings in the top order in the Ashes and returned a poorer average.

However, Crawley said any suggestion Pope is being scrutinised originates with "the media" – meaning the press – "and not within the team."

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

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