England opener Zak Crawley has indicated he was not familiar with comments made by captain Ben Stokes regarding the team environment as no place for "those lacking fortitude".
The all-rounder delivered those words in multiple conversations in the wake of England's loss in the second match of the Ashes series against the Australians previously.
Ahead of the third Test, where the visitors are staring at defeat at the earliest opportunity, Stokes noted he had let his message to "circulate freely" among the playing group.
"I've done the necessary discussions over the past two days that I needed to have done," said Stokes.
However, after Crawley scored 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 media with some skepticism," Crawley continued.
Frank Discussions and Steady Philosophy
Stokes made the "fragile individuals" comment after his side suffered a loss in the second Test to fall two matches behind.
The team subsequently went on a holiday to a Queensland resort between the second and the upcoming matches.
Prior to the Adelaide contest, Stokes said his players had held "raw" talks and he had asked them to "show a bit of dog" in their effort to remain in contention in the Ashes battle.
Yet, Crawley stated the guidance from the captain and head coach McCullum had stayed in line with their previous tenure in charge.
"The atmosphere has been very positive, unchanged," said the opener. "The focus is on maintaining positivity, playing our brand, with lots of freedom. It felt like we were capable of an extraordinary feat going into this game."
The Hosts On the Verge of Rapid Series Victory
Crawley's dismissal on day four came during a crucial triple-strike by Australia spinner Lyon.
The spinner's three wickets in a short spell – including the wickets of Harry Brook and Ben Stokes – meant the chasing side 207-6 chasing a daunting total of 435 runs.
This means, Australia require just four more wickets on Sunday's last day to move to an unassailable three-nil lead with three matches played.
A loss will extend the English team's drought in this country to 18 consecutive matches and condemn them to a fourth successive overseas Ashes series defeat.
The current battle is set to be decided in only eleven days of play – after England losing the initial matches in rapid time each.
Not since 1921, when Australia sealed a series win in the UK in eight days, has the destination of the urn been determined more swiftly. Australia have also won in eleven days on two other occasions in the 21st century.
"This is disheartening," admitted Crawley. "Our goal was to win the Ashes and we're facing elimination at this point."
"There will still be significant pride at stake and we'll certainly approach it like that," Crawley added.
"The challenge has been difficult. Australia is a very, very good side. It was always going to be hard coming here to face them. They were the front-runners coming in to it they've proven why."
Pope's Place Under Scrutiny
Although the opener's innings in the third Test likely secures questions about his short-term place in the side, Ollie Pope looks under immense pressure for his spot in the Melbourne Test on Boxing Day.
The Surrey batsman fell for 17 runs in the team's second knock on day four, adding to his modest returns versus the old enemy.
In 16 Ashes innings, the Surrey man has failed to score a fifty and averages 17.62.
A solitary other England player in over a century – Dennis Amiss – has played an equal number of innings in the top six in the Ashes and returned a lower average.
However, Crawley said any suggestion Pope is under the microscope comes from "the media" – referring to the press – "not inside the camp."
"The squad is fully aware of his considerable talent," said he. "He has had a good year if I'm honest."
"He has played several excellent innings. This is talk externally. There is no discussion of that nature regarding Pope amongst the players," he finished.
