🔗 Share this article Zak Crawley Unaware of Captain Stokes' Provocative 'Frail Characters' Comments The English opener Zak Crawley suggested he had no knowledge of comments made by skipper Stokes regarding the team environment as no place for "weak men". Stokes delivered this message in several interviews in the wake of England's defeat in the second Ashes versus the Australians earlier this month. In the lead-up to the Adelaide Test, where the visitors now face a series loss with a match to spare, Stokes noted he had let his sentiment to "circulate freely" within the squad. "I have completed the necessary discussions in recent days that I needed to have done," remarked Stokes. However, after the opener made 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 press with a pinch of salt," he added. Frank Discussions and Consistent Messaging The captain made the "fragile individuals" comment subsequent to his side suffered a loss in the second Test to fall two matches behind. The team afterwards took a break to Noosa in the gap between the second and third Tests. Prior to this match, Stokes revealed his players had held "honest" talks and he had asked them to "show a bit of dog" in their battle to stay alive in the Ashes battle. Yet, the Kent batsman stated the messaging from the captain and coach McCullum had remained in line with their prior tenure in charge. "It's been extremely upbeat, unchanged," noted the opener. "The focus is on maintaining positivity, playing our brand, with great liberty. It felt like we could do an extraordinary feat going into this game." The Hosts On the Verge of Rapid Ashes Triumph Crawley's dismissal late on Saturday was part of a decisive triple-strike by Australian off-spinner Nathan Lyon. Lyon's three wickets in 20 deliveries – he also bowled Brook and Stokes himself – meant the chasing side six down for 207 in pursuit of a daunting target of 435 runs. Consequently, the home team need four wickets on Sunday's final day to secure an insurmountable three-nil advantage after three matches played. A loss would prolong the English team's drought in this country to 18 Tests and condemn them to a fourth straight away Ashes series defeat. This series is set to be decided in just eleven days of play – with England fell the initial matches in rapid time each. The last time 1921, when the Australians sealed a series win in England in eight days, has the outcome of the Ashes urn been determined more swiftly. The hosts have also won in eleven days on two other instances in the 21st century. "This is disappointing," said Crawley. "Our goal was to win the Ashes and now we are facing elimination at this point." "There will still be plenty to play for and we'll certainly approach it like that," he continued. "It's been difficult. Australia is a formidable side. It was always going to be tough coming here to face them. They entered as the front-runners coming in to it have demonstrated their quality." Pope's Position Under Scrutiny Although the opener's performance in Adelaide probably answers doubts about his immediate place in the England team, Ollie Pope looks under immense pressure for his position in the Melbourne Test starting December 26th. Pope was out for 17 runs in the team's second innings on day four, adding to his poor record versus the old enemy. Across sixteen Ashes knocks, the Surrey man has never made a fifty and boasts an average of 17.62. A solitary other English batsman in over a century – Dennis Amiss – has featured an equal number of innings in the top six in the Ashes and returned a poorer average. But, the opener said any suggestion his teammate is under the microscope comes from "you guys" – meaning the journalists – "and not within the team." "The squad is fully aware of his considerable talent," said Crawley. "He has had a good year to be frank." "He has played some really good knocks. This is talk externally. There's no chat of that nature on Ollie amongst the players," he finished.
The English opener Zak Crawley suggested he had no knowledge of comments made by skipper Stokes regarding the team environment as no place for "weak men". Stokes delivered this message in several interviews in the wake of England's defeat in the second Ashes versus the Australians earlier this month. In the lead-up to the Adelaide Test, where the visitors now face a series loss with a match to spare, Stokes noted he had let his sentiment to "circulate freely" within the squad. "I have completed the necessary discussions in recent days that I needed to have done," remarked Stokes. However, after the opener made 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 press with a pinch of salt," he added. Frank Discussions and Consistent Messaging The captain made the "fragile individuals" comment subsequent to his side suffered a loss in the second Test to fall two matches behind. The team afterwards took a break to Noosa in the gap between the second and third Tests. Prior to this match, Stokes revealed his players had held "honest" talks and he had asked them to "show a bit of dog" in their battle to stay alive in the Ashes battle. Yet, the Kent batsman stated the messaging from the captain and coach McCullum had remained in line with their prior tenure in charge. "It's been extremely upbeat, unchanged," noted the opener. "The focus is on maintaining positivity, playing our brand, with great liberty. It felt like we could do an extraordinary feat going into this game." The Hosts On the Verge of Rapid Ashes Triumph Crawley's dismissal late on Saturday was part of a decisive triple-strike by Australian off-spinner Nathan Lyon. Lyon's three wickets in 20 deliveries – he also bowled Brook and Stokes himself – meant the chasing side six down for 207 in pursuit of a daunting target of 435 runs. Consequently, the home team need four wickets on Sunday's final day to secure an insurmountable three-nil advantage after three matches played. A loss would prolong the English team's drought in this country to 18 Tests and condemn them to a fourth straight away Ashes series defeat. This series is set to be decided in just eleven days of play – with England fell the initial matches in rapid time each. The last time 1921, when the Australians sealed a series win in England in eight days, has the outcome of the Ashes urn been determined more swiftly. The hosts have also won in eleven days on two other instances in the 21st century. "This is disappointing," said Crawley. "Our goal was to win the Ashes and now we are facing elimination at this point." "There will still be plenty to play for and we'll certainly approach it like that," he continued. "It's been difficult. Australia is a formidable side. It was always going to be tough coming here to face them. They entered as the front-runners coming in to it have demonstrated their quality." Pope's Position Under Scrutiny Although the opener's performance in Adelaide probably answers doubts about his immediate place in the England team, Ollie Pope looks under immense pressure for his position in the Melbourne Test starting December 26th. Pope was out for 17 runs in the team's second innings on day four, adding to his poor record versus the old enemy. Across sixteen Ashes knocks, the Surrey man has never made a fifty and boasts an average of 17.62. A solitary other English batsman in over a century – Dennis Amiss – has featured an equal number of innings in the top six in the Ashes and returned a poorer average. But, the opener said any suggestion his teammate is under the microscope comes from "you guys" – meaning the journalists – "and not within the team." "The squad is fully aware of his considerable talent," said Crawley. "He has had a good year to be frank." "He has played some really good knocks. This is talk externally. There's no chat of that nature on Ollie amongst the players," he finished.