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

The English opening batter Crawley has indicated he was not familiar with statements from skipper Stokes regarding the team environment as no place for "weak men".

The all-rounder delivered this message in several conversations following England's defeat in the second match of the Ashes versus Australia previously.

In the lead-up to the Adelaide Test, where England now face defeat with a match to spare, Stokes noted he had allowed his sentiment to "circulate freely" within the squad.

"I have completed the necessary discussions over the past two days that I required," said Stokes.

However, after the opener scored 85 on the fourth 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 anything stated in the media with a pinch of salt," he added.

Frank Discussions and Consistent Messaging

The captain made the "fragile individuals" comment subsequent to England were beaten in the second Test to fall two matches behind.

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

Before this match, Stokes said his players had held "raw" conversations and he had asked them to "display some fight" in their battle to remain in contention in the Ashes battle.

Nevertheless, the Kent batsman asserted the messaging from the captain and head coach Brendon McCullum had remained in line with their previous tenure in charge.

"It's been extremely upbeat, the same as always," noted Crawley. "The focus is just trying to be optimistic, play our way, with lots of freedom. We believed we were capable of something special going into this game."

The Hosts On the Verge of Rapid Series Victory

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

The spinner's triple strike in a short spell – he also bowled Brook and Stokes himself – left England 207-6 chasing a daunting target of 435 runs.

Consequently, Australia require just four more wickets on the final day to secure an insurmountable 3-0 lead with three Tests.

Defeat will extend the English team's drought in this country to 18 Tests and ensure a fourth straight away Ashes loss.

This series will be completed in only 11 days of play – with England losing the initial matches in two and four days respectively.

The last time 1921, when the Australians sealed a series win in the UK in eight days, has the destination of the urn been decided more swiftly. Australia have also triumphed in eleven days on two other instances in the modern era.

"This is disheartening," said the batsman. "We came here to regain the Ashes and now we are facing elimination now."

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

"It's been tough. Australia is a formidable team. It was always going to be hard coming here to face them. They entered as the front-runners and they've proven why."

Ollie Pope's Position Under Scrutiny

While Crawley's innings in Adelaide probably answers questions about his immediate future in the England team, Pope appears under threat for his spot in the fourth Test on Boxing Day.

The Surrey batsman fell for 17 runs in England's second innings on day four, extending his poor record versus Australia.

Across sixteen Ashes knocks, the Surrey man has never made a half-century and boasts an average of just 17.62.

Only one other England player since 1900 – Amiss – has featured as many times in the top order in Ashes Tests and recorded a poorer average.

However, Crawley said any suggestion his teammate is under the microscope comes from "you guys" – meaning the journalists – "and not within the team."

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

"He has played several excellent innings. This is talk from the outside. There is no chat of that nature regarding Pope amongst the players," Crawley finished.