Crawley Unaware of Captain Stokes' Provocative 'Frail Characters' Remarks

The English opener Crawley suggested he had no knowledge of comments made by captain Stokes regarding the team environment as no place for "weak men".

The all-rounder delivered this message in multiple interviews following England's loss in the second Ashes against the Australians previously.

Ahead of the Adelaide Test, where the visitors are staring at defeat with a match to spare, the captain stated he had let his message to "drift around" among the squad.

"I have completed the necessary discussions in recent days that I needed to have done," said the England leader.

However, after Crawley scored a knock of 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. We take everything that is said in the press with some skepticism," he added.

Frank Discussions and Consistent Messaging

The captain issued his "weak men" observation after England were beaten in the second Test to go 2-0 down.

The England squad subsequently took a holiday to Noosa between the second and third Tests.

Before this match, he said his players had held "raw" talks and he had urged them to "show a bit of dog" in their battle to stay alive in the series.

Nevertheless, the Kent batsman asserted the guidance from Stokes and coach Brendon McCullum had remained consistent with their previous tenure in leadership.

"It's been very positive, the same as always," said Crawley. "The focus is on maintaining positivity, play our way, with lots of freedom. We believed we were capable of something special entering this Test."

The Hosts Close of Rapid Series Victory

The opener's wicket on day four came during a crucial three-wicket burst by Australian spinner Lyon.

The spinner's triple strike in 20 deliveries – he also bowled Brook and Stokes himself – meant the chasing side six down for 207 in pursuit of a daunting target of 435.

This means, Australia require four wickets on Sunday's final day to secure an insurmountable 3-0 advantage with three matches played.

Defeat will extend England's winless run in Australia to 18 consecutive matches and ensure a fourth successive overseas Ashes series defeat.

This series is set to be decided in just 11 days of play – after England fell the initial matches 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 decided so quickly. Australia have also won in eleven days on two other instances in the modern era.

"It's disappointing," admitted Crawley. "We came here to win the Ashes and we're facing elimination now."

"There remains plenty to play for and we'll certainly approach it like that," Crawley added.

"It's been tough. They're a very, very good side. It was always going to be tough touring here against them. They were the front-runners coming in to it they've proven why."

Pope's Position In Question

Although Crawley's innings in the third Test likely secures doubts about his short-term place in the side, Ollie Pope looks under threat for his position in the fourth Test starting December 26th.

The Surrey batsman fell for 17 runs in the team's second innings on Saturday, extending his poor record versus the old enemy.

Across 16 Ashes innings, the Surrey man has failed to score a fifty and boasts an average of just 17.62.

Only one other English batsman since 1900 – Dennis Amiss – has played an equal number of innings in the top order in the Ashes and returned a poorer average.

But, Crawley insisted any suggestion Pope is being scrutinised comes from "the media" – referring to the press – "and not within the team."

"The squad is fully aware of his considerable talent," said he. "Ollie has enjoyed a productive year if I'm honest."

"He has played several excellent innings. This is talk externally. There is no chat of that nature on Ollie in the camp," he concluded.