🔗 Share this article Crawley Unaware of Stokes' Controversial 'Weak Men' Remarks England opener Zak Crawley suggested he had no knowledge of comments from captain Ben Stokes about the dressing room not being "weak men". Stokes delivered those words in several conversations following England's loss in the second match of the Ashes versus the Australians previously. Ahead of the third Test, where the visitors now face defeat with a match to spare, Stokes noted he had let his message to "circulate freely" within the squad. "I've done all the talking over the past two days that I required," said Stokes. However, following the opener made a knock of 85 on the penultimate day in Adelaide, he stated: "I missed those remarks." "I wasn't actively searching for it. We take everything that is said in the media with some skepticism," Crawley continued. Raw Conversations and Consistent Messaging Stokes made the "weak men" comment after his side suffered a loss in Brisbane to go two matches behind. The England squad afterwards went on a break to a Queensland resort between the second and third matches. Before the Adelaide contest, Stokes said his players had held "raw" talks and he had asked them to "show a bit of dog" in their battle to remain in contention in the Ashes battle. Nevertheless, Crawley stated the guidance from Stokes and coach Brendon McCullum had stayed consistent with their prior tenure in leadership. "It's been extremely upbeat, the same as always," said the opener. "It's on maintaining positivity, playing our brand, with great liberty. It felt like we were capable of an extraordinary feat going into this Test." Australia On the Verge of Rapid Series Victory Crawley's wicket late on Saturday came during a decisive three-wicket burst by Australian spinner Lyon. The spinner's three wickets in a short spell – including the wickets of Harry Brook and Ben Stokes – left the chasing side six down for 207 in pursuit of a notional target of 435 runs. Consequently, Australia need four wickets on Sunday's final day to move to an unassailable three-nil lead with three matches played. A loss would prolong the English team's drought in this country to 18 Tests and condemn them to a fourth straight overseas Ashes series defeat. The current battle is set to be decided in just 11 days of play – with England losing the first two Tests in rapid time each. Not since 1921, when the Australians sealed a series win in the UK in eight days, has the outcome of the Ashes urn been decided more swiftly. Australia have also triumphed in eleven days on two other instances in the modern era. "This is disheartening," said Crawley. "Our goal was to win the Ashes and now we are staring down the barrel at this point." "There remains significant pride at stake and we'll definitely view it with that mindset," Crawley added. "The challenge has been tough. They're a formidable side. It was always going to be tough coming here to face them. They were the favourites and they've proven why." Pope's Place Under Scrutiny Although Crawley's innings in the third Test likely secures doubts about his immediate place in the side, Ollie Pope appears under immense pressure for his spot in the Melbourne Test starting December 26th. The Surrey batsman fell for 17 in the team's second innings on Saturday, extending his poor record against the old enemy. In 16 Ashes innings, Pope has never made a fifty and averages just 17.62. A solitary other England player in over a century – Amiss – has played an equal number of innings in the top six in the Ashes and recorded a poorer average. But, the opener insisted any notion his teammate is being scrutinised comes from "the media" – referring to the press – "not inside the camp." "The squad is fully aware of his considerable talent," said Crawley. "He has had a productive year to be frank." "He has played several excellent innings. This is noise from the outside. There is no chat of that nature regarding Pope in the camp," Crawley finished.
England opener Zak Crawley suggested he had no knowledge of comments from captain Ben Stokes about the dressing room not being "weak men". Stokes delivered those words in several conversations following England's loss in the second match of the Ashes versus the Australians previously. Ahead of the third Test, where the visitors now face defeat with a match to spare, Stokes noted he had let his message to "circulate freely" within the squad. "I've done all the talking over the past two days that I required," said Stokes. However, following the opener made a knock of 85 on the penultimate day in Adelaide, he stated: "I missed those remarks." "I wasn't actively searching for it. We take everything that is said in the media with some skepticism," Crawley continued. Raw Conversations and Consistent Messaging Stokes made the "weak men" comment after his side suffered a loss in Brisbane to go two matches behind. The England squad afterwards went on a break to a Queensland resort between the second and third matches. Before the Adelaide contest, Stokes said his players had held "raw" talks and he had asked them to "show a bit of dog" in their battle to remain in contention in the Ashes battle. Nevertheless, Crawley stated the guidance from Stokes and coach Brendon McCullum had stayed consistent with their prior tenure in leadership. "It's been extremely upbeat, the same as always," said the opener. "It's on maintaining positivity, playing our brand, with great liberty. It felt like we were capable of an extraordinary feat going into this Test." Australia On the Verge of Rapid Series Victory Crawley's wicket late on Saturday came during a decisive three-wicket burst by Australian spinner Lyon. The spinner's three wickets in a short spell – including the wickets of Harry Brook and Ben Stokes – left the chasing side six down for 207 in pursuit of a notional target of 435 runs. Consequently, Australia need four wickets on Sunday's final day to move to an unassailable three-nil lead with three matches played. A loss would prolong the English team's drought in this country to 18 Tests and condemn them to a fourth straight overseas Ashes series defeat. The current battle is set to be decided in just 11 days of play – with England losing the first two Tests in rapid time each. Not since 1921, when the Australians sealed a series win in the UK in eight days, has the outcome of the Ashes urn been decided more swiftly. Australia have also triumphed in eleven days on two other instances in the modern era. "This is disheartening," said Crawley. "Our goal was to win the Ashes and now we are staring down the barrel at this point." "There remains significant pride at stake and we'll definitely view it with that mindset," Crawley added. "The challenge has been tough. They're a formidable side. It was always going to be tough coming here to face them. They were the favourites and they've proven why." Pope's Place Under Scrutiny Although Crawley's innings in the third Test likely secures doubts about his immediate place in the side, Ollie Pope appears under immense pressure for his spot in the Melbourne Test starting December 26th. The Surrey batsman fell for 17 in the team's second innings on Saturday, extending his poor record against the old enemy. In 16 Ashes innings, Pope has never made a fifty and averages just 17.62. A solitary other England player in over a century – Amiss – has played an equal number of innings in the top six in the Ashes and recorded a poorer average. But, the opener insisted any notion his teammate is being scrutinised comes from "the media" – referring to the press – "not inside the camp." "The squad is fully aware of his considerable talent," said Crawley. "He has had a productive year to be frank." "He has played several excellent innings. This is noise from the outside. There is no chat of that nature regarding Pope in the camp," Crawley finished.