Crawley Unaware of Stokes' Controversial 'Frail Characters' Remarks

England opener Zak Crawley has indicated he had no knowledge of comments from skipper Ben Stokes regarding the dressing room as no place for "those lacking fortitude".

Stokes made those words in several conversations in the wake of England's defeat in the second match of the Ashes versus Australia earlier this month.

In the lead-up to the Adelaide Test, where England are staring at defeat with a match to spare, Stokes stated he had allowed his message to "circulate freely" among the squad.

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

However, after Crawley scored 85 on the penultimate day in Adelaide, he commented: "I didn't see that."

"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

Stokes made the "weak men" comment subsequent to his side were beaten in Brisbane to go 2-0 down.

The England squad afterwards went on a break to a Queensland resort in the gap between the second and the upcoming matches.

Prior to this match, Stokes revealed his players had held "honest" talks and he had urged them to "display some fight" in their battle to remain in contention in the Ashes battle.

Yet, Crawley asserted the messaging from the captain and head coach Brendon McCullum had stayed consistent with their prior tenure in leadership.

"The atmosphere has been extremely upbeat, the same as always," noted Crawley. "The focus is on maintaining positivity, playing our brand, with lots of freedom. It felt like we could do something special going into this Test."

The Hosts On the Verge of Historic Series Victory

The opener's dismissal late on Saturday was part of a decisive triple-strike by Australian off-spinner Lyon.

Lyon's triple strike in 20 deliveries – he also bowled Brook and Ben Stokes – left the chasing side 207-6 in pursuit of a notional total of 435.

This means, the home team require just four more wickets on the last day to move to an unassailable three-nil lead after three Tests.

A loss will extend the English team's winless run in this country to 18 Tests and ensure a fourth straight overseas Ashes loss.

This series is set to be decided in just 11 days of cricket – with England losing the initial matches in rapid time respectively.

Not since 1921, when the Australians completed victory in England in eight days, has the outcome of the Ashes urn been determined more swiftly. The hosts have also triumphed in 11 days on two other occasions in the 21st century.

"It's disheartening," admitted the batsman. "Our goal was to win the Ashes and we're facing elimination now."

"There will still be significant pride at stake and we'll definitely view it like that," he continued.

"It's been difficult. They're a formidable team. It was inevitably hard touring here to face them. They were the front-runners coming in to it they've proven why."

Pope's Position Under Scrutiny

While Crawley's performance in the third Test probably answers doubts about his short-term future in the England team, Ollie Pope looks under immense pressure for his spot in the fourth Test on Boxing Day.

Pope was out for 17 in the team's second knock on day four, extending his modest returns against Australia.

In 16 Ashes innings, the Surrey man has never made a fifty and boasts an average of 17.62.

A solitary other English batsman in over a century – Amiss – has played an equal number of innings in the top six in the Ashes and returned a poorer average.

But, the opener insisted any suggestion his teammate is under the microscope comes from "the media" – meaning the journalists – "not inside the camp."

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

"He has produced several excellent innings. It is noise from the outside. There's no discussion of that nature on Ollie amongst the players," Crawley finished.