Zak Crawley Unaware of Stokes' Controversial 'Frail Characters' Comments

The English opener Crawley has indicated he was not familiar with statements made by skipper Ben Stokes about the dressing room as no place for "those lacking fortitude".

Stokes made those words in several conversations in the wake of England's defeat in the second Ashes versus Australia previously.

In the lead-up to the Adelaide Test, where England now face defeat at the earliest opportunity, Stokes noted he had let his sentiment to "drift around" within the playing group.

"I've done the necessary discussions in recent days that I required," said the England leader.

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

"I wasn't actively searching for it. Our approach is to take everything that is said in the media with some skepticism," he added.

Raw Conversations and Steady Philosophy

The captain made the "weak men" comment after his side were beaten in Brisbane to go 2-0 down.

The team subsequently went on a holiday to Noosa in the gap between the second and third matches.

Before the Adelaide contest, Stokes revealed his team had held "raw" conversations and he had urged them to "display some fight" in their battle to remain in contention in the series.

Yet, the Kent batsman asserted the guidance from Stokes and coach Brendon McCullum had stayed in line with their previous three years in charge.

"It's been very positive, unchanged," noted Crawley. "It's just trying to be optimistic, playing our brand, with lots of freedom. It felt like we could do an extraordinary feat going into this Test."

Australia On the Verge of Rapid Ashes Triumph

Crawley's dismissal late on Saturday came during a decisive triple-strike by Australia spinner Lyon.

Lyon's three wickets in a short spell – he also bowled Brook and Stokes himself – left the chasing side 207-6 in pursuit of a daunting target of 435 runs.

Consequently, the home team require just four more wickets on the final day to move to an insurmountable three-nil advantage with three matches played.

Defeat would prolong England's winless run in this country to 18 Tests and condemn them to a fourth straight away Ashes loss.

The current battle will be completed in just eleven days of cricket – with England losing the initial matches in rapid time each.

Not since 1921, when the Australians completed victory in the UK in eight days, has the outcome of the Ashes urn been decided more swiftly. The hosts have also won in 11 days on two other occasions in the 21st century.

"It's disheartening," admitted Crawley. "Our goal was to win the Ashes and we're facing elimination at this point."

"There remains plenty to play for and we will definitely view it with that mindset," he continued.

"It's been difficult. Australia is a very, very good team. It was inevitably tough coming here to face them. They entered as the favourites and they've proven why."

Ollie Pope's Place Under Scrutiny

While Crawley's performance in the third Test probably answers questions about his short-term place in the England team, Ollie Pope looks under immense pressure for his spot in the Melbourne Test starting December 26th.

The Surrey batsman fell for 17 in the team's second knock on Saturday, adding to his poor record against Australia.

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

A solitary other English batsman in over a century – Amiss – has played as many times in the top order in the Ashes and returned a poorer average.

However, the opener insisted any notion Pope is under the microscope comes from "you guys" – referring to the press – "and not within the team."

"The squad is fully aware how good of a player he is," added he. "Ollie has enjoyed a productive year if I'm honest."

"He has produced several excellent innings. It is talk from the outside. There is no chat like that on Ollie amongst the players," he finished.