Crawley Unaware of Captain Stokes' Provocative 'Frail Characters' Comments
England opening batter Crawley has indicated he had no knowledge of statements from captain Stokes about the dressing room as no place for "weak men".
The all-rounder delivered this message in several interviews in the wake of his team's loss in the second Ashes series against the Australians previously.
In the lead-up to the Adelaide Test, where England now face defeat at the earliest opportunity, the captain stated he had allowed his message to "circulate freely" among the playing group.
"I've done the necessary discussions over the past two days that I needed to have done," said Stokes.
However, following the opener made a knock of 85 on the penultimate day in Adelaide, he stated: "I missed those remarks."
"I didn't see and wasn't really looking out for it. Our approach is to take anything stated in the media with a pinch of salt," Crawley continued.
Raw Conversations and Steady Philosophy
The captain issued his "weak men" observation subsequent to England suffered a loss in the second Test to fall two matches behind.
The England squad afterwards took a holiday to a Queensland resort in the gap between the second and the upcoming Tests.
Prior to this match, he revealed his players had held "honest" conversations and he had urged them to "show a bit of dog" in their effort to stay alive in the Ashes battle.
Yet, Crawley stated the messaging from Stokes and coach Brendon McCullum had remained in line with their previous three years in charge.
"The atmosphere has been extremely upbeat, unchanged," noted Crawley. "It's on maintaining positivity, playing our brand, with lots of freedom. It felt like we were capable of an extraordinary feat entering this Test."
Australia Close of Historic Ashes Triumph
Crawley's dismissal late on Saturday came during a crucial triple-strike by Australian spinner Lyon.
The spinner's three wickets in 20 deliveries – including the wickets of Harry Brook and Ben Stokes – left England six down for 207 in pursuit of a notional total of 435.
This means, the home team need just four more wickets on Sunday's final day to secure an insurmountable 3-0 advantage after three Tests.
A loss will extend England's winless run in Australia to 18 consecutive matches and ensure a fourth successive overseas Ashes series defeat.
The current battle is set to be decided in only 11 days of play – after England fell the first two Tests in rapid time each.
Not since 1921, when the Australians completed victory in the UK in eight days, has the destination of the Ashes urn been determined so quickly. Australia have also won in 11 days on two other occasions in the 21st century.
"It's disheartening," admitted the batsman. "We came here to win the Ashes and we're staring down the barrel now."
"There remains plenty to play for and we'll certainly approach it like that," Crawley added.
"The challenge has been difficult. Australia is a formidable team. It was always going to be tough touring here to face them. They entered as the favourites coming in to it have demonstrated their quality."
Ollie Pope's Place In Question
While the opener's performance in Adelaide likely secures doubts about his immediate place in the side, Pope appears under immense pressure for his position in the fourth Test on Boxing Day.
The Surrey batsman was out for 17 in England's second innings on Saturday, extending his modest returns versus the old enemy.
In 16 Ashes innings, the Surrey man has never made a fifty and averages just 17.62.
A solitary other England player in over a century – Amiss – has played an equal number of innings in the top order in Ashes Tests and returned a lower average.
However, the opener said any suggestion Pope is being scrutinised comes from "you guys" – referring to the journalists – "and not within the team."
"The squad is fully aware how good of a player he is," said Crawley. "Ollie has enjoyed a good year if I'm honest."
"He has played some really good knocks. This is talk from the outside. There is no chat like that regarding Pope amongst the players," he finished.
