Crawley Claims Ignorance of Captain Stokes' Controversial 'Frail Characters' Comments

The English opener Crawley has indicated he had no knowledge of comments made by captain Ben Stokes about the dressing room as no place for "weak men".

The all-rounder delivered this message in multiple conversations following his team's loss in the second Ashes versus the Australians previously.

Ahead of the third Test, where the visitors now face a series loss with a match to spare, the captain stated he had allowed his message to "circulate freely" within the squad.

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

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

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

Raw Conversations and Consistent Messaging

The captain issued his "fragile individuals" comment after England were beaten in Brisbane to fall two matches behind.

The team subsequently took a break to Noosa between the second and the upcoming Tests.

Before the Adelaide contest, he said his team had held "raw" conversations and he had asked them to "show a bit of dog" in their battle to stay alive in the series.

Nevertheless, Crawley asserted the guidance from the captain and head coach McCullum had stayed consistent with their prior three years in charge.

"It's been extremely upbeat, the same as always," said the opener. "It's on maintaining positivity, play our way, with lots of freedom. We believed we were capable of something special entering this game."

Australia On the Verge of Historic Ashes Triumph

The opener's wicket late on Saturday came during a decisive three-wicket burst by Australian spinner Lyon.

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

Consequently, Australia need just four more wickets on Sunday's last day to move to an unassailable 3-0 lead with three Tests.

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

This series is set to be decided in just eleven days of play – with England fell the initial matches in two and four days each.

Not since 1921, when the Australians sealed a series win in England in eight days, has the outcome of the Ashes urn been decided so quickly. Australia have also triumphed in eleven days on two other instances in the 21st century.

"This is disheartening," admitted Crawley. "We came here to win the Ashes and we're staring down the barrel at this point."

"There will still be plenty to play for and we'll certainly approach it with that mindset," he continued.

"It's been tough. They're a very, very good team. It was inevitably hard coming here to face them. They entered as the front-runners and they've proven why."

Pope's Position In Question

While the opener's performance in Adelaide likely secures questions about his short-term place in the England team, Pope looks under threat for his position in the Melbourne Test starting December 26th.

The Surrey batsman was out for 17 runs in England's second innings on day four, adding to his modest returns against the old enemy.

In sixteen Ashes knocks, the Surrey man has failed to score a half-century and boasts an average of 17.62.

Only one other English batsman since 1900 – Amiss – has featured as many times in the top six in Ashes Tests and returned a poorer average.

However, Crawley said any notion Pope is being scrutinised comes from "you guys" – meaning the press – "not inside the camp."

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

"He has produced several excellent innings. It is noise externally. There's no discussion like that on Ollie amongst the players," Crawley concluded.