The English opening batter Zak Crawley has indicated he was not familiar with statements from captain Ben Stokes regarding the team environment as no place for "those lacking fortitude".
The all-rounder made this message in several interviews following England's defeat in the second match of the Ashes versus the Australians earlier this month.
Ahead of the third Test, where England now face defeat with a match to spare, Stokes stated he had allowed his sentiment to "circulate freely" among the squad.
"I have completed the necessary discussions over the past two days that I required," said the England leader.
But, after Crawley made a knock of 85 on the penultimate day in the third Test, he stated: "I didn't see that."
"I wasn't actively searching for it. We take everything that is said in the media with some skepticism," Crawley continued.
Frank Discussions and Steady Philosophy
Stokes made the "fragile individuals" observation subsequent to England were beaten in Brisbane to go 2-0 down.
The England squad subsequently went on a holiday to Noosa between the second and the upcoming matches.
Prior to this match, he said his players had held "raw" talks and he had asked them to "display some fight" in their battle to remain alive in the series.
Yet, the Kent batsman asserted the guidance from the captain and head coach McCullum had stayed consistent with their prior three years in charge.
"It's been very positive, the same as always," said Crawley. "It's just trying to be optimistic, play our way, with great liberty. We believed we were capable of an extraordinary feat going into this game."
Australia Close of Historic Series Victory
The opener's wicket on day four was part of a crucial triple-strike by Australia off-spinner Nathan Lyon.
The spinner's triple strike in a short spell – including the wickets of Harry Brook and Ben Stokes – meant the chasing side 207-6 in pursuit of a notional target of 435 runs.
Consequently, Australia require just four more wickets on Sunday's final day to move to an insurmountable 3-0 advantage after three Tests.
Defeat would prolong the English team's winless run in this country to 18 consecutive matches and condemn them to a fourth successive overseas Ashes loss.
The current battle is set to be decided in only 11 days of cricket – with England fell the initial matches in two and four days respectively.
The last time 1921, when the Australians sealed a series win in England in eight days, has the outcome of the Ashes urn been decided so quickly. The hosts have also won in eleven days on two other instances in the 21st century.
"It's disheartening," admitted Crawley. "Our goal was to regain the Ashes and now we are staring down the barrel now."
"There remains significant pride at stake and we will definitely view it with that mindset," he continued.
"It's been difficult. Australia is a formidable team. It was inevitably tough touring here against them. They were the front-runners coming in to it they've proven why."
Pope's Position Under Scrutiny
While the opener's performance in Adelaide likely secures questions about his immediate place in the England team, Ollie Pope appears under threat for his spot in the Melbourne Test starting December 26th.
Pope fell for 17 runs in England's second innings on Saturday, extending his poor record versus Australia.
Across sixteen Ashes knocks, the Surrey man has failed to score a fifty and boasts an average of 17.62.
A solitary other English batsman in over a century – Dennis Amiss – has featured as many times in the top six in Ashes Tests and returned a lower average.
But, Crawley said any notion his teammate is under the microscope originates with "the media" – meaning the journalists – "not inside the camp."
"The squad is fully aware of his considerable talent," added he. "Ollie has enjoyed a good year to be frank."
"He has produced some really good knocks. It is talk externally. There is no chat like that regarding Pope amongst the players," he concluded.
