Crawley Unaware of Captain Stokes' Provocative 'Frail Characters' Comments

England opening batter Zak Crawley has indicated he had no knowledge of comments made by skipper Stokes regarding the team environment as no place for "those lacking fortitude".

The all-rounder delivered this message in multiple conversations following his team's loss in the second Ashes series against Australia previously.

Ahead of the third Test, where England are staring at a series loss with a match to spare, Stokes stated he had let his sentiment to "drift around" among the squad.

"I've done all the talking over the past two days that I required," remarked the England leader.

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

"I didn't see and wasn't really looking out for it. Our approach is to take everything that is said in the press with a pinch of salt," Crawley continued.

Frank Discussions and Steady Philosophy

The captain issued his "fragile individuals" observation after England were beaten in Brisbane to fall 2-0 down.

The team subsequently took a break to Noosa in the gap between the second and the upcoming Tests.

Before the Adelaide contest, he 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, Crawley stated the guidance from the captain and head coach McCullum had remained consistent with their prior tenure in charge.

"It's been very positive, unchanged," noted the opener. "The focus is just trying to be optimistic, play our way, with great liberty. It felt like we were capable of something special going into this Test."

Australia On the Verge of Rapid Series Victory

Crawley's dismissal late on Saturday was part of a decisive triple-strike by Australia spinner Lyon.

Lyon's three wickets in 20 deliveries – including the wickets of Brook and Stokes himself – meant the chasing side six down for 207 chasing a daunting total of 435 runs.

Consequently, the home team require four wickets on Sunday's final day to secure an insurmountable three-nil advantage after three Tests.

Defeat will extend the English team's drought in Australia to 18 consecutive matches and ensure a fourth successive away Ashes series defeat.

This series will be completed in only 11 days of cricket – with England fell the initial matches in two and four days each.

The last time 1921, when Australia completed victory in the UK in eight days, has the destination of the Ashes urn been determined more swiftly. The hosts have also won in eleven days on two other instances in the modern era.

"It's disappointing," admitted the batsman. "We came here to regain the Ashes and we're staring down the barrel at this point."

"There remains plenty to play for and we'll definitely view it like that," he continued.

"It's been tough. Australia is a very, very good team. It was always going to be tough touring here to face them. They entered as the favourites coming in to it have demonstrated their quality."

Ollie Pope's Position In Question

While the opener's innings in the third Test likely secures questions about his short-term place in the side, Ollie Pope appears under threat for his spot in the Melbourne Test on Boxing Day.

The Surrey batsman was out for 17 runs in the team's second knock on day four, extending his poor record versus the old enemy.

In sixteen Ashes knocks, Pope has failed to score a fifty and averages just 17.62.

A solitary other England player in over a century – Dennis Amiss – has played an equal number of innings in the top order in the Ashes and returned a poorer average.

However, the opener insisted any suggestion Pope is under the microscope comes from "the media" – meaning the journalists – "and not within the team."

"We all know of his considerable talent," added he. "He has had a productive year if I'm honest."

"He has produced several excellent innings. It is talk externally. There is no chat like that regarding Pope in the camp," he concluded.