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

England opener Zak Crawley has indicated he had no knowledge of statements from skipper Stokes about the team environment as no place for "weak men".

Stokes made this message in several interviews following his team's loss in the second match of the Ashes against the Australians earlier this month.

In the lead-up to the Adelaide Test, where England now face defeat at the earliest opportunity, the captain stated he had allowed his message to "circulate freely" within the squad.

"I've done all the talking in recent days that I required," said Stokes.

But, following the opener scored 85 on the penultimate day in Adelaide, he stated: "I missed those remarks."

"I wasn't actively searching for it. Our approach is to take anything stated in the media with a pinch of salt," he added.

Frank Discussions and Steady Philosophy

Stokes made the "weak men" comment after his side were beaten in the second Test to fall 2-0 down.

The England squad afterwards went on a break to a Queensland resort in the gap between the second and the upcoming matches.

Prior to the Adelaide contest, Stokes revealed his players had held "honest" conversations and he had asked them to "show a bit of dog" in their effort to stay alive in the series.

Nevertheless, the Kent batsman stated the messaging from Stokes and coach McCullum had remained consistent with their prior three years in charge.

"It's been extremely upbeat, the same as always," noted Crawley. "It's just trying to be optimistic, play our way, with great liberty. It felt like we could do an extraordinary feat entering this game."

The Hosts On the Verge of Rapid Series Victory

Crawley's dismissal on day four came during a decisive three-wicket burst by Australia spinner Lyon.

Lyon's triple strike in a short spell – he also bowled Brook and Stokes himself – meant the chasing side six down for 207 in pursuit of a daunting total of 435.

This means, Australia require four wickets on the last day to move to an insurmountable three-nil advantage after three matches played.

Defeat would prolong the English team's drought in this country to 18 Tests and ensure a fourth straight overseas Ashes series loss.

This series will be completed in only 11 days of play – with England losing the first two Tests in rapid time each.

The last time 1921, when the Australians sealed victory in the UK in eight days, has the outcome of the urn been determined so quickly. The hosts have also triumphed in 11 days on two other instances in the modern era.

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

"There remains plenty to play for and we'll definitely view it like that," he continued.

"It's been difficult. Australia is a very, very good team. It was always going to be tough coming here to face them. They were the favourites and have demonstrated their quality."

Pope's Position In Question

Although the opener's innings in Adelaide likely secures questions about his immediate future in the side, Ollie Pope looks under immense pressure for his spot in the Melbourne Test starting December 26th.

Pope was out for 17 in England's second innings on day four, extending his modest returns versus Australia.

Across 16 Ashes innings, the Surrey man has failed to score a half-century and averages just 17.62.

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

But, Crawley insisted any notion Pope is being scrutinised comes from "you guys" – referring to the press – "not inside the camp."

"The squad is fully aware of his considerable talent," added Crawley. "Ollie has enjoyed a good year if I'm honest."

"He has produced some really good knocks. It is talk from the outside. There is no chat like that on Ollie amongst the players," he concluded.