Zak Crawley Unaware of Captain Stokes' Provocative 'Frail Characters' Comments
The English opening batter Zak Crawley has indicated he was not familiar with comments made by captain Stokes regarding the dressing room as no place for "those lacking fortitude".
Stokes delivered this message in several conversations following his team's loss in the second match of the Ashes series versus Australia earlier this month.
In the lead-up to the Adelaide Test, where England now face a series loss with a match to spare, the captain noted he had let his sentiment to "circulate freely" within the squad.
"I've done the necessary discussions over the past two days that I required," remarked the England leader.
However, following Crawley scored 85 on the fourth day in Adelaide, he stated: "I didn't see that."
"I wasn't actively searching for it. Our approach is to take everything that is said in the media with some skepticism," Crawley continued.
Frank Discussions and Consistent Messaging
Stokes made the "fragile individuals" comment subsequent to his side were beaten in the second Test to fall 2-0 down.
The England squad subsequently went on a holiday to a Queensland resort between the second and the upcoming matches.
Before the Adelaide contest, Stokes said his players had held "honest" talks and he had asked them to "show a bit of dog" in their battle to stay alive in the series.
Yet, the Kent batsman asserted the messaging from the captain and coach McCullum had remained in line with their previous tenure in leadership.
"The atmosphere has been extremely upbeat, unchanged," noted Crawley. "It's on maintaining positivity, playing our brand, with great liberty. We believed we were capable of something special going into this game."
The Hosts Close of Rapid Ashes Triumph
The opener's dismissal on day four was part of a crucial triple-strike by Australia off-spinner Lyon.
Lyon's triple strike in a short spell – including the wickets of Brook and Ben Stokes – left the chasing side six down for 207 chasing a daunting total of 435 runs.
This means, the home team need four wickets on the last day to secure an unassailable 3-0 advantage after three matches played.
A loss will extend England's winless run in Australia to 18 Tests and condemn them to a fourth successive overseas Ashes series loss.
This series is set to be decided in only 11 days of cricket – with England losing the first two Tests in rapid time each.
The last time 1921, when the Australians sealed victory in the UK in eight days, has the outcome of the urn been determined so quickly. Australia have also won in eleven days on two other occasions in the 21st century.
"This is disappointing," admitted the batsman. "We came here to regain the Ashes and we're facing elimination now."
"There will still be plenty to play for and we'll certainly approach it with that mindset," he continued.
"It's been difficult. They're a very, very good side. It was inevitably tough touring here against them. They entered as the favourites and they've proven why."
Ollie Pope's Place Under Scrutiny
While Crawley's performance in Adelaide likely secures questions about his short-term future in the England team, Ollie Pope appears under immense pressure for his position in the fourth Test starting December 26th.
The Surrey batsman was out for 17 runs in the team's second innings on Saturday, adding to his poor record against the old enemy.
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 played as many times in the top six in Ashes Tests and returned a lower average.
However, Crawley said any suggestion Pope is under the microscope comes from "the media" – referring to the journalists – "and not within the team."
"The squad is fully aware how good of a player he is," added he. "He has had a good year if I'm honest."
"He has played several excellent innings. This is talk externally. There's no chat like that regarding Pope amongst the players," he concluded.
