England opening batter Zak Crawley has indicated he was not familiar with comments made by skipper Ben Stokes about the dressing room not being "those lacking fortitude".
Stokes delivered those words in several interviews following his team's loss in the second match of the Ashes against Australia earlier this month.
Ahead of the third Test, where England are staring at a series loss at the earliest opportunity, the captain stated he had allowed his message to "drift around" among the squad.
"I have completed the necessary discussions in recent days that I needed to have done," remarked Stokes.
But, following the opener made a knock of 85 on the fourth day in the third Test, he stated: "I didn't see that."
"I didn't see and wasn't really looking out for it. We take everything that is said in the media with some skepticism," he added.
Raw Conversations and Consistent Messaging
Stokes issued his "fragile individuals" comment after his side were beaten in Brisbane to go two matches behind.
The England squad subsequently went on a holiday to Noosa in the gap between the second and third Tests.
Prior to this match, Stokes revealed his players had held "honest" conversations and he had asked them to "display some fight" in their effort to remain in contention in the series.
Yet, the Kent batsman stated the guidance from the captain and head coach McCullum had stayed consistent with their prior tenure in charge.
"It's been very positive, the same as always," said Crawley. "It's just trying to be optimistic, playing our brand, with great liberty. It felt like we could do something special going into this Test."
The Hosts Close of Historic Series Victory
Crawley's dismissal late on Saturday came during a decisive triple-strike by Australian off-spinner Nathan Lyon.
The spinner's triple strike in a short spell – including the wickets of Harry Brook and Stokes himself – left England six down for 207 in pursuit of a notional total of 435 runs.
Consequently, Australia require four wickets on the last day to secure an insurmountable three-nil lead with three Tests.
Defeat would prolong the English team's winless run in Australia to 18 Tests and ensure a fourth straight overseas Ashes series defeat.
This series will be completed in just 11 days of cricket – with England fell the first two Tests in rapid time respectively.
The last time 1921, when the Australians completed a series win in England in eight days, has the destination of the Ashes urn been determined so quickly. The hosts have also won in eleven days on two other occasions in the modern era.
"It's disappointing," said the batsman. "Our goal was to regain the Ashes and now we are staring down the barrel at this point."
"There remains plenty to play for and we will definitely view it with that mindset," Crawley added.
"The challenge has been tough. Australia is a formidable team. It was inevitably tough touring here to face them. They were the favourites and have demonstrated their quality."
Ollie Pope's Place Under Scrutiny
Although the opener's innings in Adelaide likely secures questions about his immediate place in the England team, Pope appears under immense pressure for his spot in the Melbourne Test starting December 26th.
Pope was out for 17 runs in England's second innings on Saturday, extending his modest returns versus the old enemy.
In sixteen Ashes knocks, Pope has failed to score a fifty and boasts an average of just 17.62.
A solitary other England player in over a century – Dennis Amiss – has featured an equal number of innings in the top order in the Ashes and returned a lower average.
However, Crawley insisted any notion Pope is being scrutinised comes from "the media" – referring to the press – "and not within the team."
"We all know how good of a player he is," added he. "Ollie has enjoyed a good year to be frank."
"He has produced several excellent innings. It is noise externally. There's no chat of that nature on Ollie amongst the players," he finished.
