Zak Crawley Unaware of Captain Stokes' Controversial 'Frail Characters' Comments
The English opener Crawley suggested he had no knowledge of statements made by captain Stokes about the team environment not being "weak men".
The all-rounder made this message in multiple conversations following his team's loss in the second Ashes versus the Australians previously.
Ahead of the third Test, where the visitors are staring at defeat at the earliest opportunity, Stokes noted he had allowed his sentiment to "circulate freely" within the playing group.
"I've done the necessary discussions in recent days that I needed to have done," remarked the England leader.
However, following the opener made 85 on the penultimate day in the third Test, he stated: "I didn't see that."
"I wasn't actively searching for it. Our approach is to take anything stated in the media with a pinch of salt," Crawley continued.
Frank Discussions and Consistent Messaging
The captain made the "weak men" observation subsequent to England suffered a loss in the second Test to go two matches behind.
The England squad afterwards went on a holiday to Noosa between the second and the upcoming Tests.
Before the Adelaide contest, he said his team had held "raw" talks and he had asked them to "show a bit of dog" in their battle to remain alive in the Ashes battle.
Nevertheless, the Kent batsman asserted the messaging from the captain and head coach Brendon McCullum had stayed in line with their previous three years in leadership.
"The atmosphere has been very positive, the same as always," said the opener. "The focus is just trying to be optimistic, playing our brand, with great liberty. We believed we could do an extraordinary feat going into this game."
The Hosts Close of Historic Ashes Triumph
Crawley's dismissal on day four was part of a crucial triple-strike by Australia off-spinner Nathan Lyon.
Lyon's three wickets in a short spell – including the wickets of Brook and Stokes himself – meant England six down for 207 in pursuit of a daunting target of 435 runs.
Consequently, the home team need four wickets on the last day to secure an insurmountable three-nil advantage after three matches played.
A loss will extend the English team's winless run in this country to 18 Tests and condemn them to a fourth successive away Ashes series defeat.
The current battle is set to be decided in just eleven days of cricket – after England losing the first two Tests in two and four days each.
The last time 1921, when Australia completed victory in the UK in eight days, has the destination of the Ashes urn been decided so quickly. Australia have also triumphed in eleven days on two other instances in the 21st century.
"This is disheartening," said the batsman. "We came here to regain the Ashes and now we are facing elimination at this point."
"There remains plenty to play for and we will certainly approach it with that mindset," he continued.
"It's been tough. Australia is a very, very good team. It was inevitably hard touring here against them. They were the front-runners coming in to it they've proven why."
Ollie Pope's Place In Question
Although Crawley's performance in the third Test likely secures questions about his immediate place in the England team, Ollie Pope appears under immense pressure for his spot in the fourth Test on Boxing Day.
The Surrey batsman fell for 17 runs in England's second knock on day four, extending his poor record versus the old enemy.
In sixteen Ashes knocks, the Surrey man has never made a half-century and averages 17.62.
Only one other English batsman since 1900 – Dennis Amiss – has played as many times in the top six in the Ashes and recorded a lower average.
However, Crawley said any notion Pope is under the microscope originates with "you guys" – referring to the press – "and not within the team."
"We all know how good of a player he is," said Crawley. "He has had a good year to be frank."
"He has played several excellent innings. This is talk externally. There is no chat of that nature on Ollie in the camp," he concluded.
