England opening batter Zak Crawley suggested he was not familiar with statements made by skipper Ben Stokes about the dressing room not being "weak men".
Stokes made this message in several interviews following his team's loss in the second match of the Ashes series against the Australians previously.
In the lead-up to the Adelaide Test, where England are staring at a series loss at the earliest opportunity, the captain stated he had let his sentiment to "circulate freely" within the squad.
"I have completed the necessary discussions over the past two days that I required," said Stokes.
However, following the opener made a knock of 85 on the penultimate day in Adelaide, he commented: "I missed those remarks."
"I wasn't actively searching for it. We take everything that is said in the press with some skepticism," Crawley continued.
Raw Conversations and Consistent Messaging
The captain made the "fragile individuals" comment subsequent to England suffered a loss in the second Test to fall two matches behind.
The team subsequently took a holiday to a Queensland resort between the second and third Tests.
Before this match, Stokes revealed his team had held "raw" talks and he had asked them to "display some fight" in their battle to remain alive in the Ashes battle.
Yet, the Kent batsman stated the messaging from Stokes and coach Brendon McCullum had remained in line with their prior three years in leadership.
"The atmosphere has been very positive, unchanged," said Crawley. "It's on maintaining positivity, playing our brand, with lots of freedom. We believed we were capable of something special entering this game."
Australia On the Verge of Rapid Ashes Triumph
Crawley's dismissal late on Saturday was part of a crucial triple-strike by Australia spinner Nathan Lyon.
Lyon's three wickets in a short spell – he also bowled Harry Brook and Ben Stokes – left the chasing side 207-6 chasing a notional total of 435 runs.
This means, the home team need four wickets on the final day to secure an unassailable 3-0 lead with three matches played.
A loss would prolong the English team's drought in this country to 18 Tests and ensure a fourth straight overseas Ashes series defeat.
This series is set to be decided in only 11 days of cricket – after England losing the initial matches in two and four days respectively.
Not since 1921, when Australia completed victory in the UK in eight days, has the destination of the urn been determined more swiftly. Australia have also won in 11 days on two other occasions in the 21st century.
"It's disappointing," said the batsman. "Our goal was to win the Ashes and now we are facing elimination at this point."
"There remains significant pride at stake and we'll certainly approach it with that mindset," Crawley added.
"The challenge has been tough. Australia is a formidable team. It was inevitably hard touring here against them. They were the front-runners coming in to it have demonstrated their quality."
Ollie Pope's Place Under Scrutiny
While Crawley's innings in the third Test probably answers doubts about his immediate place in the England team, Ollie Pope looks under immense pressure for his position in the fourth Test starting December 26th.
The Surrey batsman was out for 17 in England's second innings on Saturday, adding to his poor record against Australia.
Across sixteen Ashes knocks, Pope has never made a half-century and boasts an average of 17.62.
Only one other English batsman in over a century – Dennis Amiss – has played an equal number of innings in the top six in the Ashes and recorded a poorer average.
However, the opener said any suggestion his teammate is under the microscope comes from "the media" – referring to the press – "not inside the camp."
"The squad is fully aware how good of a player he is," added he. "Ollie has enjoyed a productive year to be frank."
"He has produced some really good knocks. It is noise externally. There's no discussion of that nature on Ollie amongst the players," Crawley concluded.
