Zak Crawley Unaware of Stokes' Provocative 'Weak Men' Remarks

England opening batter Crawley has indicated he had no knowledge of comments from skipper Ben Stokes about the dressing room as no place for "weak men".

Stokes delivered this message in multiple conversations following his team's loss in the second Ashes series versus the Australians previously.

Ahead of the Adelaide Test, where the visitors now face defeat with a match to spare, the captain stated he had let his sentiment to "circulate freely" among the playing group.

"I've done all the talking over the past two days that I needed to have done," remarked Stokes.

But, after Crawley scored 85 on the penultimate day in the third Test, he stated: "I didn't see that."

"I wasn't actively searching for it. We take anything stated in the press with a pinch of salt," he added.

Frank Discussions and Steady Philosophy

The captain issued his "fragile individuals" comment subsequent to his side were beaten in the second Test to fall two matches behind.

The England squad subsequently took a holiday to Noosa in the gap between the second and third Tests.

Prior to this match, Stokes revealed his players had held "raw" conversations and he had asked them to "show a bit of dog" in their battle to stay alive in the Ashes battle.

Yet, Crawley asserted the guidance from Stokes and head coach Brendon McCullum had remained in line with their prior three years in leadership.

"It's been very positive, unchanged," noted the opener. "The focus is on maintaining positivity, playing our brand, with great liberty. It felt like we were capable of an extraordinary feat going into this game."

Australia On the Verge of Historic Series Victory

The opener's dismissal late on Saturday was part of a decisive three-wicket burst by Australian spinner Nathan Lyon.

The spinner's three wickets in a short spell – including the wickets of Harry Brook and Ben Stokes – left the chasing side 207-6 chasing a notional total of 435 runs.

This means, the home team need four wickets on Sunday's final day to move to an unassailable 3-0 advantage after three Tests.

Defeat would prolong England's drought in Australia to 18 consecutive matches and ensure a fourth successive overseas Ashes series loss.

This series will be completed in just eleven days of play – with England losing the first two Tests in two and four days respectively.

The last time 1921, when the Australians completed a series win in England in eight days, has the destination of the urn been decided more swiftly. The hosts have also won in eleven days on two other instances in the modern era.

"It's disheartening," said 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 with that mindset," Crawley added.

"The challenge has been tough. They're a formidable team. It was inevitably hard touring here to face them. They entered as the favourites and they've proven why."

Pope's Position In Question

While the opener's performance in the third Test likely secures doubts about his immediate future in the England team, Ollie Pope looks under threat for his spot in the Melbourne Test on Boxing Day.

The Surrey batsman fell for 17 in England's second innings on Saturday, adding to his modest returns versus Australia.

In sixteen Ashes knocks, Pope has never made a half-century and averages 17.62.

A solitary other English batsman since 1900 – Dennis Amiss – has played an equal number of innings in the top six in Ashes Tests and returned a lower average.

But, Crawley insisted any suggestion his teammate is being scrutinised originates with "the media" – referring to the journalists – "and not within the team."

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

"He has played several excellent innings. It is noise externally. There's no discussion of that nature on Ollie amongst the players," he concluded.