Crawley Unaware of Captain Stokes' Controversial 'Weak Men' Remarks

England opening batter Crawley has indicated he was not familiar with statements from captain Ben Stokes regarding the dressing room not being "those lacking fortitude".

The all-rounder made this message in several conversations in the wake of his team's loss in the second Ashes versus Australia previously.

Ahead of the Adelaide Test, where the visitors are staring at a series loss at the earliest opportunity, the captain stated he had allowed his message to "drift around" within the squad.

"I've done all the talking over the past two days that I required," said Stokes.

But, following Crawley scored 85 on the fourth day in Adelaide, he stated: "I missed those remarks."

"I wasn't actively searching for it. Our approach is to take anything stated in the press with a pinch of salt," he added.

Raw Conversations and Steady Philosophy

The captain issued his "fragile individuals" observation subsequent to his side were beaten in the second Test to go 2-0 down.

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

Prior to this match, Stokes revealed his players had held "raw" talks and he had asked them to "display some fight" in their battle to stay in contention in the series.

Yet, the Kent batsman stated the messaging from Stokes and head coach McCullum had stayed consistent with their prior three years in leadership.

"The atmosphere has been very positive, the same as always," noted Crawley. "It's on maintaining positivity, playing our brand, with lots of freedom. It felt like we could do an extraordinary feat entering this game."

The Hosts Close of Historic Ashes Triumph

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

Lyon's three wickets in 20 deliveries – he also bowled Harry Brook and Stokes himself – left England six down for 207 in pursuit of a daunting target of 435.

This means, Australia require just four more wickets on the last day to move to an insurmountable three-nil lead after three matches played.

Defeat will extend the English team's winless run in Australia to 18 consecutive matches and ensure a fourth successive overseas Ashes series loss.

The current battle will be completed in only 11 days of play – with England fell the first two Tests in two and four days respectively.

The last time 1921, when the Australians completed a series win in England in eight days, has the outcome of the urn been decided more swiftly. The hosts have also triumphed in eleven days on two other occasions in the 21st century.

"It's disheartening," admitted the batsman. "We came here to win the Ashes and now we are staring down the barrel at this point."

"There will still be plenty to play for and we will certainly approach it with that mindset," he continued.

"It's been difficult. They're a formidable team. It was inevitably hard coming here against them. They were the front-runners and they've proven why."

Ollie Pope's Position In Question

Although the opener's innings in Adelaide likely secures questions about his immediate place in the side, Ollie Pope appears under immense pressure for his spot in the Melbourne Test on Boxing Day.

Pope was out for 17 in the team's second knock on Saturday, extending his poor record versus Australia.

In 16 Ashes innings, Pope has failed to score a half-century and boasts an average of just 17.62.

Only one other England player in over a century – Amiss – has played an equal number of innings in the top six in Ashes Tests and returned a poorer average.

However, Crawley insisted any notion Pope is under the microscope originates with "the media" – referring to the press – "not inside the camp."

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

"He has produced some really good knocks. It is talk from the outside. There's no chat of that nature on Ollie amongst the players," Crawley concluded.