🔗 Share this article Crawley Claims Ignorance of Stokes' Provocative 'Frail Characters' Remarks The English opener Crawley suggested he had no knowledge of comments from skipper Stokes regarding the team environment not being "those lacking fortitude". The all-rounder made this message in multiple conversations in the wake of England's defeat in the second Ashes series against Australia earlier this month. Ahead of the third Test, where the visitors are staring at a series loss at the earliest opportunity, the captain noted he had let his sentiment to "drift around" among the playing group. "I've done all the talking over the past two days that I required," said the England leader. However, after the opener made a knock of 85 on the fourth day in Adelaide, he commented: "I missed those remarks." "I wasn't actively searching for it. Our approach is to take anything stated in the media with some skepticism," he added. Frank Discussions and Consistent Messaging The captain issued his "weak men" observation after England were beaten in the second Test to go 2-0 down. The team afterwards took a break to a Queensland resort in the gap between the second and the upcoming Tests. Prior to the Adelaide contest, he revealed his players had held "honest" talks and he had asked them to "show a bit of dog" in their effort to remain alive in the series. Nevertheless, the Kent batsman asserted the messaging from Stokes and head coach McCullum had remained consistent with their previous three years in charge. "It's been very positive, the same as always," said Crawley. "The focus is just trying to be optimistic, playing our brand, with great liberty. We believed we were capable of something special entering this Test." Australia Close of Historic Ashes Triumph Crawley's wicket late on Saturday came during a decisive triple-strike by Australia off-spinner Nathan Lyon. Lyon's triple strike in 20 deliveries – including the wickets of Brook and Ben Stokes – meant England six down for 207 in pursuit of a daunting total of 435 runs. Consequently, the home team need four wickets on the last day to secure an insurmountable three-nil lead after three Tests. Defeat will extend England's winless run in this country to 18 Tests and condemn them to a fourth successive away Ashes defeat. The current battle will be completed in only 11 days of play – after England losing the initial matches in rapid time each. The last time 1921, when Australia sealed victory in England in eight days, has the outcome of the Ashes urn been decided so quickly. Australia have also won in eleven days on two other instances in the modern era. "It's disappointing," said Crawley. "We came here to regain the Ashes and we're facing elimination now." "There remains plenty to play for and we'll certainly approach it like that," Crawley added. "It's been difficult. They're a formidable side. It was always going to be hard coming here against them. They were the front-runners and have demonstrated their quality." Pope's Place In Question While the opener's performance in the third Test likely secures questions about his short-term place in the England team, Pope appears under immense pressure for his position in the fourth Test on Boxing Day. Pope was out for 17 runs in England's second knock on Saturday, adding to his poor record versus Australia. In sixteen Ashes knocks, Pope has never made a fifty and averages just 17.62. A solitary other England player since 1900 – Amiss – has featured an equal number of innings in the top six in the Ashes and returned a lower average. But, Crawley insisted any suggestion his teammate is being scrutinised comes from "you guys" – meaning 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 played some really good knocks. It is talk from the outside. There is no chat like that regarding Pope amongst the players," he concluded.
The English opener Crawley suggested he had no knowledge of comments from skipper Stokes regarding the team environment not being "those lacking fortitude". The all-rounder made this message in multiple conversations in the wake of England's defeat in the second Ashes series against Australia earlier this month. Ahead of the third Test, where the visitors are staring at a series loss at the earliest opportunity, the captain noted he had let his sentiment to "drift around" among the playing group. "I've done all the talking over the past two days that I required," said the England leader. However, after the opener made a knock of 85 on the fourth day in Adelaide, he commented: "I missed those remarks." "I wasn't actively searching for it. Our approach is to take anything stated in the media with some skepticism," he added. Frank Discussions and Consistent Messaging The captain issued his "weak men" observation after England were beaten in the second Test to go 2-0 down. The team afterwards took a break to a Queensland resort in the gap between the second and the upcoming Tests. Prior to the Adelaide contest, he revealed his players had held "honest" talks and he had asked them to "show a bit of dog" in their effort to remain alive in the series. Nevertheless, the Kent batsman asserted the messaging from Stokes and head coach McCullum had remained consistent with their previous three years in charge. "It's been very positive, the same as always," said Crawley. "The focus is just trying to be optimistic, playing our brand, with great liberty. We believed we were capable of something special entering this Test." Australia Close of Historic Ashes Triumph Crawley's wicket late on Saturday came during a decisive triple-strike by Australia off-spinner Nathan Lyon. Lyon's triple strike in 20 deliveries – including the wickets of Brook and Ben Stokes – meant England six down for 207 in pursuit of a daunting total of 435 runs. Consequently, the home team need four wickets on the last day to secure an insurmountable three-nil lead after three Tests. Defeat will extend England's winless run in this country to 18 Tests and condemn them to a fourth successive away Ashes defeat. The current battle will be completed in only 11 days of play – after England losing the initial matches in rapid time each. The last time 1921, when Australia sealed victory in England in eight days, has the outcome of the Ashes urn been decided so quickly. Australia have also won in eleven days on two other instances in the modern era. "It's disappointing," said Crawley. "We came here to regain the Ashes and we're facing elimination now." "There remains plenty to play for and we'll certainly approach it like that," Crawley added. "It's been difficult. They're a formidable side. It was always going to be hard coming here against them. They were the front-runners and have demonstrated their quality." Pope's Place In Question While the opener's performance in the third Test likely secures questions about his short-term place in the England team, Pope appears under immense pressure for his position in the fourth Test on Boxing Day. Pope was out for 17 runs in England's second knock on Saturday, adding to his poor record versus Australia. In sixteen Ashes knocks, Pope has never made a fifty and averages just 17.62. A solitary other England player since 1900 – Amiss – has featured an equal number of innings in the top six in the Ashes and returned a lower average. But, Crawley insisted any suggestion his teammate is being scrutinised comes from "you guys" – meaning 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 played some really good knocks. It is talk from the outside. There is no chat like that regarding Pope amongst the players," he concluded.