Zak Crawley Claims Ignorance of Stokes' Provocative 'Weak Men' Remarks

England opener Crawley suggested he was not familiar with statements made by captain Stokes regarding the dressing room as no place for "those lacking fortitude".

The all-rounder made those words in multiple conversations in the wake of England's defeat in the second Ashes versus Australia previously.

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

"I've done the necessary discussions over the past two days that I needed to have done," said the England leader.

But, after Crawley scored 85 on the penultimate day in the third Test, he stated: "I missed those remarks."

"I didn't see and wasn't really looking out for it. Our approach is to take anything stated in the media with some skepticism," he added.

Frank Discussions and Steady Philosophy

Stokes issued his "weak men" observation after his side suffered a loss in the second Test to go two matches behind.

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

Prior to the Adelaide contest, he revealed his team had held "honest" conversations and he had urged them to "display some fight" in their effort to remain alive in the series.

Nevertheless, the Kent batsman stated the guidance from the captain and head coach McCullum had remained in line with their previous tenure in charge.

"The atmosphere has been very positive, unchanged," noted the opener. "It's on maintaining positivity, play our way, with lots of freedom. We believed we could do an extraordinary feat going into this game."

The Hosts Close of Historic Series Victory

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

Lyon's three wickets in 20 deliveries – including the wickets of Brook and Stokes himself – meant the chasing side six down for 207 in pursuit of a notional target of 435.

Consequently, Australia need four wickets on Sunday's last day to move to an insurmountable 3-0 advantage with three Tests.

A loss will extend England's winless run in this country to 18 Tests and ensure a fourth straight overseas Ashes loss.

The current battle is set to be decided in only eleven days of play – after England fell the first two Tests in two and four days each.

The last time 1921, when the Australians completed victory in the UK in eight days, has the outcome of the urn been determined more swiftly. The hosts have also triumphed in 11 days on two other occasions in the modern era.

"It's disappointing," said the batsman. "Our goal was to win the Ashes and now we are staring down the barrel now."

"There will still be significant pride at stake and we'll certainly approach it like that," he continued.

"It's been difficult. They're a formidable side. It was inevitably hard touring here against them. They were the favourites coming in to it have demonstrated their quality."

Ollie Pope's Place In Question

Although Crawley's innings in the third Test probably answers questions about his immediate future in the England team, Pope appears under threat for his position in the fourth Test starting December 26th.

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

In 16 Ashes innings, the Surrey man has never made a fifty and boasts an average of 17.62.

A solitary other England player in over a century – Amiss – has featured an equal number of innings in the top six in the Ashes and recorded a poorer average.

However, the opener insisted any suggestion his teammate is being scrutinised originates with "the media" – meaning the press – "not inside the camp."

"We all know how good of a player he is," added he. "Ollie has enjoyed a productive year to be frank."

"He has played some really good knocks. It is noise externally. There's no discussion of that nature regarding Pope in the camp," Crawley concluded.