England opening batter Zak Crawley has indicated he was not familiar with comments from skipper Ben Stokes about the dressing room not being "those lacking fortitude".
Stokes delivered this message in multiple conversations in the wake of his team's defeat in the second match of the Ashes series against Australia previously.
Ahead of the Adelaide Test, where the visitors are staring at defeat at the earliest opportunity, the captain noted he had allowed his message to "drift around" within the playing group.
"I have completed the necessary discussions over the past two days that I needed to have done," remarked the England leader.
However, following Crawley made a knock of 85 on the fourth day in the third Test, he stated: "I didn't see that."
"I wasn't actively searching for it. Our approach is to take anything stated in the press with a pinch of salt," Crawley continued.
Raw Conversations and Consistent Messaging
Stokes made the "fragile individuals" comment after England suffered a loss in the second Test to fall 2-0 down.
The team afterwards went on a break to a Queensland resort between the second and the upcoming Tests.
Prior to this match, Stokes revealed his team had held "raw" talks and he had asked them to "display some fight" in their effort to stay in contention in the series.
Yet, the Kent batsman stated the messaging from the captain and head coach McCullum had remained consistent with their previous tenure in charge.
"It's been extremely upbeat, the same as always," said the opener. "The focus is on maintaining positivity, playing our brand, with great liberty. It felt like we were capable of something special going into this Test."
The Hosts Close of Historic Ashes Triumph
Crawley's wicket late on Saturday was part of a decisive three-wicket burst by Australian off-spinner Nathan Lyon.
Lyon's triple strike in 20 deliveries – including the wickets of Harry Brook and Ben Stokes – meant the chasing side six down for 207 chasing a daunting target of 435.
Consequently, the home team require four wickets on the final day to secure an unassailable 3-0 advantage with three matches played.
A loss would prolong England's drought in this country to 18 Tests and ensure a fourth successive away Ashes series loss.
The current battle will be completed in only 11 days of play – with England fell the initial matches in two and four days each.
Not since 1921, when Australia completed victory in the UK in eight days, has the outcome of the Ashes urn been decided more swiftly. Australia have also triumphed in eleven days on two other occasions in the modern era.
"It's disappointing," said the batsman. "Our goal was to win the Ashes and we're staring down the barrel now."
"There remains significant pride at stake and we will certainly approach it with that mindset," he continued.
"It's been difficult. They're a formidable team. It was inevitably tough coming here against them. They were the front-runners and have demonstrated their quality."
Pope's Place In Question
Although the opener's performance in Adelaide likely secures questions about his short-term future in the side, Ollie Pope appears under immense pressure for his spot in the fourth Test on Boxing Day.
The Surrey batsman was out for 17 in England's second innings on Saturday, adding to his poor record versus the old enemy.
Across sixteen Ashes knocks, Pope has failed to score a fifty and boasts an average of 17.62.
Only one other England player since 1900 – Dennis Amiss – has featured an equal number of innings in the top order in the Ashes and recorded a poorer average.
But, the opener said any notion his teammate is being scrutinised comes from "the media" – meaning the journalists – "not inside the camp."
"We all know of his considerable talent," added he. "Ollie has enjoyed a productive year if I'm honest."
"He has produced several excellent innings. It is noise externally. There is no chat of that nature on Ollie in the camp," he concluded.
