🔗 Share this article Zak Crawley Unaware of Stokes' Controversial 'Weak Men' Comments The English opener Zak Crawley has indicated he had no knowledge of comments made by skipper Ben Stokes regarding the dressing room not being "weak men". The all-rounder delivered those words in multiple interviews in the wake of England's defeat in the second match of the Ashes against Australia earlier this month. Ahead of the third Test, where the visitors are staring at defeat at the earliest opportunity, the captain stated he had let his message to "circulate freely" within the playing group. "I have completed the necessary discussions over the past two days that I needed to have done," remarked the England leader. However, following Crawley scored a knock of 85 on the penultimate day in the third Test, 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 a pinch of salt," he added. Raw Conversations and Consistent Messaging The captain issued his "weak men" comment subsequent to his side suffered a loss in Brisbane to go two matches behind. The England squad subsequently took a holiday to a Queensland resort between the second and the upcoming Tests. Prior to this match, he said his team had held "raw" talks and he had asked them to "show a bit of dog" in their effort to stay in contention in the series. Yet, the Kent batsman asserted the guidance from the captain and coach McCullum had remained in line with their previous three years in charge. "The atmosphere has been extremely upbeat, the same as always," noted Crawley. "It's on maintaining positivity, play our way, with lots of freedom. We believed we could do an extraordinary feat going into this Test." The Hosts Close of Historic Ashes Triumph Crawley's wicket on day four was part of a crucial triple-strike by Australian off-spinner Nathan Lyon. The spinner's triple strike in a short spell – he also bowled Harry Brook and Ben Stokes – left the chasing side 207-6 in pursuit of a daunting total of 435 runs. This means, Australia require four wickets on the final day to secure an unassailable 3-0 advantage after three Tests. Defeat will extend the English team's winless run in Australia to 18 consecutive matches and ensure a fourth successive away Ashes series loss. This series will be completed in only eleven days of cricket – after England fell the first two Tests in rapid time each. Not since 1921, when Australia sealed a series win in the UK in eight days, has the destination of the Ashes urn been determined so quickly. The hosts have also triumphed in 11 days on two other occasions in the modern era. "This is disheartening," 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 will definitely view it with that mindset," he continued. "It's been difficult. Australia is a formidable team. It was always going to be tough coming here to face them. They were the front-runners coming in to it they've proven why." Pope's Place In Question Although the opener's performance in the third Test probably answers questions about his short-term place in the England team, Ollie Pope appears under immense pressure for his position in the Melbourne Test starting December 26th. Pope fell for 17 in the team's second knock on Saturday, adding to his poor record against Australia. Across sixteen Ashes knocks, the Surrey man has failed to score a half-century and averages 17.62. A solitary other England player in over a century – Dennis Amiss – has featured an equal number of innings in the top six in Ashes Tests and returned a lower average. But, Crawley insisted any suggestion Pope is being scrutinised comes from "you guys" – referring to the press – "not inside the camp." "We all know how good of a player he is," added he. "He has had a productive year to be frank." "He has produced several excellent innings. This is noise externally. There's no chat like that regarding Pope in the camp," Crawley concluded.
The English opener Zak Crawley has indicated he had no knowledge of comments made by skipper Ben Stokes regarding the dressing room not being "weak men". The all-rounder delivered those words in multiple interviews in the wake of England's defeat in the second match of the Ashes against Australia earlier this month. Ahead of the third Test, where the visitors are staring at defeat at the earliest opportunity, the captain stated he had let his message to "circulate freely" within the playing group. "I have completed the necessary discussions over the past two days that I needed to have done," remarked the England leader. However, following Crawley scored a knock of 85 on the penultimate day in the third Test, 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 a pinch of salt," he added. Raw Conversations and Consistent Messaging The captain issued his "weak men" comment subsequent to his side suffered a loss in Brisbane to go two matches behind. The England squad subsequently took a holiday to a Queensland resort between the second and the upcoming Tests. Prior to this match, he said his team had held "raw" talks and he had asked them to "show a bit of dog" in their effort to stay in contention in the series. Yet, the Kent batsman asserted the guidance from the captain and coach McCullum had remained in line with their previous three years in charge. "The atmosphere has been extremely upbeat, the same as always," noted Crawley. "It's on maintaining positivity, play our way, with lots of freedom. We believed we could do an extraordinary feat going into this Test." The Hosts Close of Historic Ashes Triumph Crawley's wicket on day four was part of a crucial triple-strike by Australian off-spinner Nathan Lyon. The spinner's triple strike in a short spell – he also bowled Harry Brook and Ben Stokes – left the chasing side 207-6 in pursuit of a daunting total of 435 runs. This means, Australia require four wickets on the final day to secure an unassailable 3-0 advantage after three Tests. Defeat will extend the English team's winless run in Australia to 18 consecutive matches and ensure a fourth successive away Ashes series loss. This series will be completed in only eleven days of cricket – after England fell the first two Tests in rapid time each. Not since 1921, when Australia sealed a series win in the UK in eight days, has the destination of the Ashes urn been determined so quickly. The hosts have also triumphed in 11 days on two other occasions in the modern era. "This is disheartening," 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 will definitely view it with that mindset," he continued. "It's been difficult. Australia is a formidable team. It was always going to be tough coming here to face them. They were the front-runners coming in to it they've proven why." Pope's Place In Question Although the opener's performance in the third Test probably answers questions about his short-term place in the England team, Ollie Pope appears under immense pressure for his position in the Melbourne Test starting December 26th. Pope fell for 17 in the team's second knock on Saturday, adding to his poor record against Australia. Across sixteen Ashes knocks, the Surrey man has failed to score a half-century and averages 17.62. A solitary other England player in over a century – Dennis Amiss – has featured an equal number of innings in the top six in Ashes Tests and returned a lower average. But, Crawley insisted any suggestion Pope is being scrutinised comes from "you guys" – referring to the press – "not inside the camp." "We all know how good of a player he is," added he. "He has had a productive year to be frank." "He has produced several excellent innings. This is noise externally. There's no chat like that regarding Pope in the camp," Crawley concluded.