🔗 Share this article Crawley Unaware of Stokes' Controversial 'Weak Men' Comments The English opener Crawley suggested he was not familiar with comments from skipper Stokes about the dressing room as no place for "weak men". The all-rounder delivered this message in multiple interviews following England's loss in the second match of the Ashes series versus Australia previously. Ahead of the third Test, where the visitors now face a series loss at the earliest opportunity, Stokes noted he had allowed his sentiment to "drift around" among the playing group. "I have completed the necessary discussions in recent days that I required," remarked Stokes. However, after Crawley made a knock of 85 on the fourth day in the third Test, he commented: "I missed those remarks." "I wasn't actively searching for it. We take everything that is said in the press with a pinch of salt," Crawley continued. Raw Conversations and Consistent Messaging The captain issued his "weak men" observation after his side suffered a loss in the second Test to fall two matches behind. The England squad subsequently took a break to a Queensland resort between the second and third matches. Prior to the Adelaide contest, Stokes revealed his players had held "raw" conversations and he had asked them to "display some fight" in their battle to stay in contention in the Ashes battle. Nevertheless, 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 very positive, unchanged," noted the opener. "It's on maintaining positivity, play our way, with lots of freedom. It felt like we were capable of an extraordinary feat going into this Test." Australia Close of Historic Series Victory Crawley's dismissal on day four came during a decisive triple-strike by Australia off-spinner Lyon. The spinner's triple strike in a short spell – he also bowled Brook and Ben Stokes – meant the chasing side six down for 207 chasing a notional target of 435 runs. Consequently, Australia require just four more wickets on Sunday's last day to move to an insurmountable 3-0 advantage with three Tests. A loss would prolong England's winless run in this country to 18 Tests and condemn them to a fourth successive away Ashes series loss. The current battle is set to be decided in only 11 days of cricket – with England losing the first two Tests in rapid time respectively. Not since 1921, when the Australians sealed a series win in England in eight days, has the destination of the Ashes urn been determined more swiftly. The hosts have also won in 11 days on two other occasions in the 21st century. "It's disappointing," said the batsman. "We came here to win the Ashes and we're staring down the barrel at this point." "There remains significant pride at stake and we'll certainly approach it with that mindset," he continued. "The challenge has been difficult. Australia is a formidable team. It was always going to be hard touring here to face them. They were the favourites coming in to it have demonstrated their quality." Ollie Pope's Place Under Scrutiny While the opener's performance in the third Test probably answers doubts about his immediate place in the side, Pope looks under threat for his spot in the fourth Test starting December 26th. The Surrey batsman was out for 17 in the team's second innings on day four, adding to his poor record versus Australia. In sixteen Ashes knocks, the Surrey man has failed to score a fifty and boasts an average of just 17.62. A solitary other England player in over a century – Dennis Amiss – has played as many times in the top six in Ashes Tests and returned a lower average. But, the opener insisted any suggestion his teammate is under the microscope comes from "the media" – referring to the press – "not inside the camp." "We all know 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. It is noise from the outside. There is no discussion like that on Ollie in the camp," he finished.
The English opener Crawley suggested he was not familiar with comments from skipper Stokes about the dressing room as no place for "weak men". The all-rounder delivered this message in multiple interviews following England's loss in the second match of the Ashes series versus Australia previously. Ahead of the third Test, where the visitors now face a series loss at the earliest opportunity, Stokes noted he had allowed his sentiment to "drift around" among the playing group. "I have completed the necessary discussions in recent days that I required," remarked Stokes. However, after Crawley made a knock of 85 on the fourth day in the third Test, he commented: "I missed those remarks." "I wasn't actively searching for it. We take everything that is said in the press with a pinch of salt," Crawley continued. Raw Conversations and Consistent Messaging The captain issued his "weak men" observation after his side suffered a loss in the second Test to fall two matches behind. The England squad subsequently took a break to a Queensland resort between the second and third matches. Prior to the Adelaide contest, Stokes revealed his players had held "raw" conversations and he had asked them to "display some fight" in their battle to stay in contention in the Ashes battle. Nevertheless, 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 very positive, unchanged," noted the opener. "It's on maintaining positivity, play our way, with lots of freedom. It felt like we were capable of an extraordinary feat going into this Test." Australia Close of Historic Series Victory Crawley's dismissal on day four came during a decisive triple-strike by Australia off-spinner Lyon. The spinner's triple strike in a short spell – he also bowled Brook and Ben Stokes – meant the chasing side six down for 207 chasing a notional target of 435 runs. Consequently, Australia require just four more wickets on Sunday's last day to move to an insurmountable 3-0 advantage with three Tests. A loss would prolong England's winless run in this country to 18 Tests and condemn them to a fourth successive away Ashes series loss. The current battle is set to be decided in only 11 days of cricket – with England losing the first two Tests in rapid time respectively. Not since 1921, when the Australians sealed a series win in England in eight days, has the destination of the Ashes urn been determined more swiftly. The hosts have also won in 11 days on two other occasions in the 21st century. "It's disappointing," said the batsman. "We came here to win the Ashes and we're staring down the barrel at this point." "There remains significant pride at stake and we'll certainly approach it with that mindset," he continued. "The challenge has been difficult. Australia is a formidable team. It was always going to be hard touring here to face them. They were the favourites coming in to it have demonstrated their quality." Ollie Pope's Place Under Scrutiny While the opener's performance in the third Test probably answers doubts about his immediate place in the side, Pope looks under threat for his spot in the fourth Test starting December 26th. The Surrey batsman was out for 17 in the team's second innings on day four, adding to his poor record versus Australia. In sixteen Ashes knocks, the Surrey man has failed to score a fifty and boasts an average of just 17.62. A solitary other England player in over a century – Dennis Amiss – has played as many times in the top six in Ashes Tests and returned a lower average. But, the opener insisted any suggestion his teammate is under the microscope comes from "the media" – referring to the press – "not inside the camp." "We all know 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. It is noise from the outside. There is no discussion like that on Ollie in the camp," he finished.