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

The English opening batter Zak Crawley has indicated he had no knowledge of comments from skipper Stokes regarding the team environment not being "those lacking fortitude".

The all-rounder delivered this message in multiple interviews following England's defeat in the second Ashes series versus the Australians earlier this month.

Ahead of the third Test, where England now face a series loss with a match to spare, the captain stated he had let his message to "drift around" within the squad.

"I have completed all the talking in recent days that I required," said Stokes.

However, after the opener scored 85 on the fourth day in Adelaide, he commented: "I missed those remarks."

"I wasn't actively searching for it. Our approach is to take anything stated in the press with some skepticism," he added.

Frank Discussions and Consistent Messaging

The captain made the "fragile individuals" comment after his side suffered a loss in Brisbane to fall 2-0 down.

The team afterwards took a holiday to Noosa in the gap between the second and the upcoming matches.

Prior to the Adelaide contest, Stokes revealed his team had held "raw" talks and he had asked them to "show a bit of dog" in their battle to stay in contention in the Ashes battle.

Nevertheless, Crawley stated the guidance from Stokes and coach Brendon McCullum had remained in line with their prior tenure in charge.

"The atmosphere has been extremely upbeat, unchanged," said the opener. "The focus is just trying to be optimistic, playing our brand, with great liberty. It felt like we were capable of something special going into this Test."

The Hosts On the Verge of Historic Series Victory

Crawley's dismissal late on Saturday came during a crucial three-wicket burst by Australian spinner Nathan Lyon.

Lyon's three wickets in 20 deliveries – he also bowled Brook and Stokes himself – meant England six down for 207 in pursuit of a daunting total of 435 runs.

This means, the home team require four wickets on the last day to move to an insurmountable 3-0 advantage with three Tests.

Defeat will extend England's drought in this country to 18 Tests and ensure a fourth straight away Ashes series defeat.

The current battle will be completed in just eleven days of play – with England losing the initial matches in two and four days each.

Not since 1921, when Australia completed a series win in the UK in eight days, has the outcome of the Ashes urn been decided more swiftly. Australia have also won in 11 days on two other occasions in the 21st century.

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

"There will still be plenty to play for and we'll certainly approach it like that," he continued.

"The challenge has been difficult. Australia is a very, very good side. It was always going to be hard coming here to face them. They were the favourites and have demonstrated their quality."

Ollie Pope's Place In Question

Although Crawley's performance in the third Test probably answers doubts about his immediate place in the side, Pope looks under immense pressure for his spot in the Melbourne Test starting December 26th.

Pope fell for 17 runs in the team's second innings on day four, extending his poor record against the old enemy.

Across 16 Ashes innings, Pope has never made a fifty and averages 17.62.

Only one other English batsman in over a century – Dennis Amiss – has featured as many times in the top order in Ashes Tests and returned a poorer average.

However, Crawley insisted any suggestion Pope is under the microscope originates with "the media" – referring to the journalists – "and not within the team."

"We all know how good of a player he is," added Crawley. "He has had a good year if I'm honest."

"He has produced some really good knocks. It is talk from the outside. There's no discussion like that regarding Pope amongst the players," he finished.