Zak Crawley Unaware of Captain Stokes' Provocative 'Weak Men' Comments

The English opener Crawley has indicated he was not familiar with comments made by skipper Stokes about the dressing room not being "weak men".

The all-rounder made this message in multiple conversations following England's defeat in the second Ashes series versus the Australians previously.

Ahead of the third Test, where the visitors are staring at a series loss with a match to spare, Stokes noted he had allowed his sentiment to "drift around" within the squad.

"I have completed the necessary discussions over the past two days that I needed to have done," remarked the England leader.

However, following Crawley scored 85 on the fourth 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 everything that is said in the press with some skepticism," he added.

Frank Discussions and Steady Philosophy

The captain issued his "weak men" observation subsequent to his side suffered a loss in Brisbane to go 2-0 down.

The England squad afterwards took a break to Noosa in the gap between the second and the upcoming Tests.

Before this match, Stokes revealed his players had held "honest" talks and he had urged them to "show a bit of dog" in their effort to remain in contention in the series.

Nevertheless, the Kent batsman stated the guidance from Stokes and head coach Brendon McCullum had remained consistent with their previous three years in charge.

"The atmosphere has been extremely upbeat, the same as always," said the opener. "The focus is just trying to be optimistic, play our way, with lots of freedom. We believed we could do an extraordinary feat entering this game."

The Hosts On the Verge of Historic Series Victory

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

The spinner's triple strike in a short spell – including the wickets of Harry Brook and Stokes himself – left the chasing side six down for 207 chasing a notional target of 435 runs.

Consequently, Australia require four wickets on Sunday's last day to secure an insurmountable 3-0 advantage after three Tests.

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

The current battle will be completed in only eleven days of cricket – with England fell the initial matches in rapid time respectively.

Not since 1921, when Australia sealed victory in the UK in eight days, has the outcome of the urn been determined more swiftly. The hosts have also triumphed in eleven days on two other instances in the 21st century.

"This is disheartening," admitted Crawley. "Our goal was to win the Ashes and we're staring down the barrel now."

"There will still be plenty to play for and we will definitely view it with that mindset," he continued.

"The challenge has been tough. Australia is a very, very good side. It was always going to be tough coming here against them. They entered as the favourites and have demonstrated their quality."

Pope's Place Under Scrutiny

Although Crawley's performance in the third Test probably answers questions about his short-term place in the England team, Pope appears under threat for his spot in the fourth Test on Boxing Day.

Pope fell for 17 in England's second innings on day four, adding to his modest returns versus the old enemy.

In 16 Ashes innings, Pope has failed to score a fifty and averages 17.62.

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

But, the opener said any notion Pope is being scrutinised comes from "the media" – meaning the journalists – "not inside the camp."

"We all know of his considerable talent," added Crawley. "He has had a productive year if I'm honest."

"He has played some really good knocks. This is noise from the outside. There is no chat like that regarding Pope amongst the players," he concluded.