Zak Crawley Unaware of Stokes' Controversial 'Weak Men' Remarks
The English opener Zak Crawley suggested he had no knowledge of statements from skipper Ben 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 match of the Ashes against the Australians earlier this month.
Ahead of the Adelaide Test, where the visitors are staring at a series loss with a match to spare, the captain noted he had let his message to "drift around" within the playing group.
"I've done all the talking in recent days that I needed to have done," remarked the England leader.
But, following Crawley scored a knock of 85 on the fourth day in the third Test, he stated: "I missed those remarks."
"I wasn't actively searching for it. Our approach is to take everything that is said in the media with a pinch of salt," Crawley continued.
Raw Conversations and Steady Philosophy
The captain made the "fragile individuals" observation after England suffered a loss in the second Test to go two matches behind.
The team afterwards took a break to a Queensland resort in the gap between the second and third matches.
Prior to this match, he said his team had held "honest" conversations and he had asked them to "show a bit of dog" in their effort to stay alive in the series.
Nevertheless, Crawley asserted the messaging from Stokes and coach Brendon McCullum had remained in line with their prior three years in leadership.
"It's been very positive, the same as always," said Crawley. "The focus is on maintaining positivity, playing our brand, with lots of freedom. We believed we were capable of something special entering this Test."
Australia Close of Historic Ashes Triumph
Crawley's wicket late on Saturday came during a decisive three-wicket burst by Australia spinner Nathan Lyon.
Lyon's triple strike in 20 deliveries – including the wickets of Harry Brook and Stokes himself – left England 207-6 chasing a daunting target of 435.
Consequently, the home team require just four more wickets on the final day to move to an unassailable 3-0 lead with three Tests.
A loss will extend England's drought in Australia to 18 Tests and condemn them to a fourth straight away Ashes loss.
The current battle will be completed in only eleven days of play – with England losing the initial matches in two and four days respectively.
Not since 1921, when Australia completed victory in England in eight days, has the destination of the Ashes urn been determined more swiftly. The hosts have also triumphed in 11 days on two other instances in the 21st century.
"It's disheartening," admitted Crawley. "We came here to win the Ashes and we're staring down the barrel now."
"There remains significant pride at stake and we'll definitely view it with that mindset," he continued.
"The challenge has been difficult. They're a very, very good team. It was always going to be hard touring here against them. They entered as the front-runners coming in to it have demonstrated their quality."
Pope's Place In Question
While Crawley's performance in the third Test probably answers doubts about his immediate place in the England team, Ollie Pope appears under threat for his spot in the fourth Test on Boxing Day.
The Surrey batsman fell for 17 in the team's second knock on Saturday, adding to his poor record versus the old enemy.
Across 16 Ashes innings, the Surrey man has never made a fifty and averages just 17.62.
A solitary other England player since 1900 – Amiss – has played an equal number of innings in the top six in the Ashes and recorded a poorer average.
But, the opener said any suggestion Pope is being scrutinised comes from "the media" – referring to the press – "and not within the team."
"The squad is fully aware of his considerable talent," said Crawley. "He has had a productive year to be frank."
"He has produced several excellent innings. It is noise from the outside. There's no discussion of that nature on Ollie in the camp," Crawley finished.
