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

The English opener Zak Crawley has indicated he had no knowledge of statements made by captain Stokes regarding the dressing room not being "weak men".

Stokes delivered this message in multiple interviews in the wake of England's loss in the second match of the Ashes versus the Australians earlier this month.

Ahead of the third Test, where England are staring at a series loss with a match to spare, Stokes stated he had let his message to "circulate freely" within the squad.

"I've done the necessary discussions over the past two days that I required," remarked Stokes.

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

"I wasn't actively searching for it. We take everything that is said in the media with some skepticism," Crawley continued.

Raw Conversations and Consistent Messaging

The captain made the "weak men" observation subsequent to England suffered a loss in Brisbane to go two matches behind.

The England squad afterwards went on a break to Noosa between the second and the upcoming Tests.

Before this match, he revealed his team had held "honest" talks and he had asked them to "show a bit of dog" in their effort to stay alive in the Ashes battle.

Yet, the Kent batsman stated the guidance from the captain and coach Brendon McCullum had stayed in line with their previous tenure in leadership.

"The atmosphere has been very positive, the same as always," said 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 Historic Ashes Triumph

Crawley's wicket late on Saturday came during a decisive three-wicket burst by Australian off-spinner Nathan Lyon.

Lyon's three wickets in 20 deliveries – he also bowled Brook and Ben Stokes – left England 207-6 chasing a notional total of 435.

Consequently, the home team need four wickets on the final day to secure an insurmountable three-nil advantage with three Tests.

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

The current battle is set to be decided in just eleven days of play – with England fell the first two Tests in rapid time each.

Not since 1921, when the Australians sealed victory in the UK in eight days, has the destination of the urn been decided more swiftly. The hosts have also won in 11 days on two other occasions in the modern era.

"It's disappointing," said the batsman. "We came here to regain the Ashes and we're facing elimination at this point."

"There will still be significant pride at stake 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 coming in to it they've proven why."

Pope's Position Under Scrutiny

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

The Surrey batsman was out for 17 in the team's second knock on Saturday, adding to his modest returns against the old enemy.

Across 16 Ashes innings, Pope has failed to score a fifty and averages 17.62.

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

But, Crawley insisted any notion his teammate is under the microscope originates with "the media" – referring to 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 played several excellent innings. It is noise externally. There is no discussion like that regarding Pope in the camp," Crawley concluded.