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

England opener Crawley suggested he had no knowledge of comments made by captain Stokes about the team environment not being "weak men".

Stokes delivered this message in multiple interviews in the wake of his team's defeat in the second Ashes series versus the Australians previously.

Ahead of the Adelaide Test, where England now face a series loss with a match to spare, the captain stated he had allowed 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 the England leader.

However, after the opener made a knock of 85 on the penultimate day in the third Test, he commented: "I missed those remarks."

"I didn't see and wasn't really looking out for it. We take everything that is said in the media with some skepticism," Crawley continued.

Frank Discussions and Consistent Messaging

The captain made the "weak men" comment subsequent to England suffered a loss in the second Test to go 2-0 down.

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

Before this match, he revealed his players had held "raw" talks and he had urged them to "show a bit of dog" in their effort to remain in contention in the Ashes battle.

Nevertheless, Crawley asserted the messaging from Stokes and coach McCullum had remained consistent with their previous three years in charge.

"The atmosphere has been extremely upbeat, unchanged," noted the opener. "It's just trying to be optimistic, playing our brand, with great liberty. We believed we could do an extraordinary feat entering this Test."

Australia On the Verge of Rapid Ashes Triumph

The opener's wicket on day four was part of a crucial triple-strike by Australia spinner Nathan Lyon.

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

This means, Australia need just four more wickets on Sunday's final day to move to an insurmountable 3-0 advantage after three Tests.

Defeat would prolong the English team's winless run in Australia to 18 consecutive matches and condemn them to a fourth straight overseas Ashes defeat.

The current battle will be completed in just eleven days of play – after England losing the first two Tests in two and four days respectively.

The last time 1921, when Australia sealed victory in England in eight days, has the outcome of the urn been decided so quickly. The hosts have also triumphed in 11 days on two other instances in the 21st century.

"It's disheartening," admitted Crawley. "We came here to regain the Ashes and now we are facing elimination at this point."

"There remains significant pride at stake and we will definitely view it like that," Crawley added.

"The challenge has been tough. They're a very, very good team. It was inevitably tough touring here against them. They entered as the favourites coming in to it they've proven why."

Ollie Pope's Place In Question

While the opener's innings in the third Test likely secures questions about his immediate place in the England team, Ollie Pope looks under threat for his spot in the fourth Test starting December 26th.

Pope was out for 17 in England's second innings on Saturday, adding to his modest returns versus Australia.

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

A solitary other England player since 1900 – Dennis Amiss – has featured as many times in the top six in the Ashes and recorded a poorer average.

However, Crawley said any notion Pope is under the microscope originates with "the media" – meaning the journalists – "and not within the team."

"The squad is fully aware of his considerable talent," said he. "He has had a good year if I'm honest."

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