🔗 Share this article Crawley Claims Ignorance of Stokes' Provocative 'Weak Men' Comments England opener Zak Crawley suggested he had no knowledge of comments from skipper Stokes about the team environment as no place for "weak men". Stokes made those words in multiple conversations in the wake of his team's loss in the second Ashes against the Australians earlier this month. In the lead-up to the Adelaide Test, where England are staring at a series loss with a match to spare, Stokes stated he had allowed his message to "circulate freely" within the squad. "I've done all the talking in recent days that I needed to have done," remarked Stokes. But, after Crawley made 85 on the penultimate day in Adelaide, he stated: "I didn't see that." "I wasn't actively searching for it. We take everything that is said in the media with a pinch of salt," he added. Raw Conversations and Consistent Messaging Stokes issued his "fragile individuals" observation subsequent to England were beaten in Brisbane to go 2-0 down. The England squad afterwards took a holiday to a Queensland resort between the second and the upcoming Tests. Before the Adelaide contest, he said his players had held "raw" talks and he had asked them to "display some fight" in their effort to remain in contention in the series. Nevertheless, Crawley stated the guidance from Stokes and head coach Brendon McCullum had remained consistent with their previous three years in leadership. "It's been very positive, the same as always," said the opener. "The focus is on maintaining positivity, playing our brand, with lots of freedom. We believed we could do an extraordinary feat entering this game." The Hosts On the Verge of Rapid Ashes Triumph Crawley's dismissal late on Saturday came during a decisive triple-strike by Australian spinner Nathan Lyon. The spinner's triple strike in 20 deliveries – he also bowled Harry Brook and Ben Stokes – meant England 207-6 in pursuit of a daunting total of 435 runs. This means, the home team require just four more wickets on the final day to move to an insurmountable 3-0 advantage with three Tests. A loss would prolong the English team's winless run in Australia to 18 consecutive matches and ensure a fourth successive away Ashes series loss. This series is set to be decided in only eleven days of cricket – with England losing the initial matches in rapid time respectively. Not since 1921, when the Australians completed victory in the UK in eight days, has the outcome of the urn been decided more swiftly. Australia have also won in eleven days on two other occasions in the modern era. "This is disheartening," said Crawley. "We came here to win the Ashes and we're staring down the barrel now." "There remains plenty to play for and we'll definitely view it like that," Crawley added. "It's been tough. Australia is a formidable team. It was always going to be tough touring here to face them. They were the favourites coming in to it they've proven why." Ollie Pope's Place In Question Although the opener's innings in Adelaide likely secures questions about his immediate place in the England team, Pope looks under immense pressure for his spot in the fourth Test on Boxing Day. The Surrey batsman fell for 17 runs in England's second innings on Saturday, extending his poor record against the old enemy. Across sixteen Ashes knocks, the Surrey man has failed to score a half-century and averages 17.62. A solitary other England player in over a century – Dennis Amiss – has featured an equal number of innings in the top order in Ashes Tests and returned a lower average. However, Crawley said any notion Pope is being scrutinised comes from "the media" – meaning the journalists – "not inside the camp." "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 from the outside. There is no discussion of that nature on Ollie in the camp," he concluded.
England opener Zak Crawley suggested he had no knowledge of comments from skipper Stokes about the team environment as no place for "weak men". Stokes made those words in multiple conversations in the wake of his team's loss in the second Ashes against the Australians earlier this month. In the lead-up to the Adelaide Test, where England are staring at a series loss with a match to spare, Stokes stated he had allowed his message to "circulate freely" within the squad. "I've done all the talking in recent days that I needed to have done," remarked Stokes. But, after Crawley made 85 on the penultimate day in Adelaide, he stated: "I didn't see that." "I wasn't actively searching for it. We take everything that is said in the media with a pinch of salt," he added. Raw Conversations and Consistent Messaging Stokes issued his "fragile individuals" observation subsequent to England were beaten in Brisbane to go 2-0 down. The England squad afterwards took a holiday to a Queensland resort between the second and the upcoming Tests. Before the Adelaide contest, he said his players had held "raw" talks and he had asked them to "display some fight" in their effort to remain in contention in the series. Nevertheless, Crawley stated the guidance from Stokes and head coach Brendon McCullum had remained consistent with their previous three years in leadership. "It's been very positive, the same as always," said the opener. "The focus is on maintaining positivity, playing our brand, with lots of freedom. We believed we could do an extraordinary feat entering this game." The Hosts On the Verge of Rapid Ashes Triumph Crawley's dismissal late on Saturday came during a decisive triple-strike by Australian spinner Nathan Lyon. The spinner's triple strike in 20 deliveries – he also bowled Harry Brook and Ben Stokes – meant England 207-6 in pursuit of a daunting total of 435 runs. This means, the home team require just four more wickets on the final day to move to an insurmountable 3-0 advantage with three Tests. A loss would prolong the English team's winless run in Australia to 18 consecutive matches and ensure a fourth successive away Ashes series loss. This series is set to be decided in only eleven days of cricket – with England losing the initial matches in rapid time respectively. Not since 1921, when the Australians completed victory in the UK in eight days, has the outcome of the urn been decided more swiftly. Australia have also won in eleven days on two other occasions in the modern era. "This is disheartening," said Crawley. "We came here to win the Ashes and we're staring down the barrel now." "There remains plenty to play for and we'll definitely view it like that," Crawley added. "It's been tough. Australia is a formidable team. It was always going to be tough touring here to face them. They were the favourites coming in to it they've proven why." Ollie Pope's Place In Question Although the opener's innings in Adelaide likely secures questions about his immediate place in the England team, Pope looks under immense pressure for his spot in the fourth Test on Boxing Day. The Surrey batsman fell for 17 runs in England's second innings on Saturday, extending his poor record against the old enemy. Across sixteen Ashes knocks, the Surrey man has failed to score a half-century and averages 17.62. A solitary other England player in over a century – Dennis Amiss – has featured an equal number of innings in the top order in Ashes Tests and returned a lower average. However, Crawley said any notion Pope is being scrutinised comes from "the media" – meaning the journalists – "not inside the camp." "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 from the outside. There is no discussion of that nature on Ollie in the camp," he concluded.