Crawley Unaware of Captain Stokes' Provocative 'Weak Men' Comments
England opener Zak Crawley suggested he had no knowledge of statements from captain Ben Stokes about the team environment not being "those lacking fortitude".
The all-rounder made this message in multiple interviews in the wake of England's loss in the second match of the Ashes against Australia earlier this month.
In the lead-up to the third Test, where England now face defeat with a match to spare, the captain noted he had allowed his message to "drift around" within the playing group.
"I've done the necessary discussions over the past two days that I needed to have done," said the England leader.
But, following Crawley scored 85 on the fourth day in Adelaide, he stated: "I didn't see that."
"I wasn't actively searching for it. Our approach is to take everything that is said in the media with some skepticism," Crawley continued.
Raw Conversations and Consistent Messaging
The captain made the "fragile individuals" observation subsequent to his side suffered a loss in Brisbane to go 2-0 down.
The team subsequently went on a break to a Queensland resort in the gap between the second and third matches.
Prior to this match, he revealed his team had held "honest" talks and he had urged them to "show a bit of dog" in their battle to stay in contention in the series.
Nevertheless, the Kent batsman asserted the guidance from the captain and coach Brendon McCullum had stayed consistent with their prior three years in charge.
"It's been extremely upbeat, unchanged," noted the opener. "It's on maintaining positivity, playing our brand, with lots of freedom. We believed we could do something special going into this game."
Australia On the Verge of Rapid Ashes Triumph
The opener's wicket on day four came during a decisive three-wicket burst by Australian spinner Lyon.
Lyon's triple strike in 20 deliveries – he also bowled Harry Brook and Ben Stokes – left the chasing side six down for 207 in pursuit of a notional target of 435 runs.
Consequently, the home team require just four more wickets on Sunday's last day to secure an insurmountable 3-0 advantage with three Tests.
Defeat would prolong the English team's drought in this country to 18 consecutive matches and condemn them to a fourth straight away Ashes series defeat.
The current battle will be completed in only eleven days of cricket – after England fell the first two Tests in rapid time each.
The last time 1921, when the Australians completed a series win in England in eight days, has the destination of the urn been determined so quickly. Australia have also triumphed in 11 days on two other occasions in the modern era.
"This is 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. Australia is a formidable side. It was inevitably hard coming here to face them. They entered as the front-runners and have demonstrated their quality."
Pope's Position In Question
While Crawley's innings in the third Test likely secures questions about his short-term place in the England team, Ollie Pope looks under immense pressure for his position in the fourth Test starting December 26th.
Pope fell for 17 runs in England's second innings on day four, adding to his modest returns against Australia.
Across sixteen Ashes knocks, Pope has failed to score a half-century and boasts an average of 17.62.
Only one other English batsman in over a century – Dennis Amiss – has featured an equal number of innings in the top six in the Ashes and recorded a lower average.
But, the opener insisted any notion his teammate is under the microscope originates with "you guys" – meaning the press – "and not within the team."
"The squad is fully aware of his considerable talent," added Crawley. "He has had a productive year if I'm honest."
"He has produced some really good knocks. This is noise externally. There is no chat like that on Ollie in the camp," he finished.
