England opening batter Zak Crawley has indicated he had no knowledge of statements from captain Ben Stokes regarding the team environment as no place for "weak men".
Stokes made this message in several interviews following his team's defeat in the second Ashes versus the Australians earlier this month.
Ahead of the Adelaide Test, where England now face a series loss at the earliest opportunity, Stokes stated he had allowed his message to "drift around" among the playing group.
"I've done all the talking in recent days that I needed to have done," remarked Stokes.
But, after the opener scored 85 on the penultimate day in Adelaide, he commented: "I didn't see that."
"I didn't see and wasn't really looking out for it. Our approach is to take everything that is said in the press with some skepticism," he added.
Raw Conversations and Steady Philosophy
The captain made the "fragile individuals" observation subsequent to England were beaten in the second Test to go two matches behind.
The team subsequently took a holiday to a Queensland resort between the second and the upcoming Tests.
Before this match, Stokes said his players had held "honest" talks and he had asked them to "show a bit of dog" in their effort to remain alive in the Ashes battle.
Yet, the Kent batsman asserted the messaging from the captain and coach McCullum had remained in line with their prior three years in charge.
"It's been very positive, unchanged," noted the opener. "It's just trying to be optimistic, playing our brand, with lots of freedom. We believed we could do something special going into this game."
The Hosts On the Verge of Historic Ashes Triumph
Crawley's dismissal on day four came during a crucial three-wicket burst by Australian off-spinner Nathan Lyon.
Lyon's triple strike in a short spell – he also bowled Brook and Ben Stokes – meant England 207-6 chasing a notional total of 435 runs.
This means, the home team require just four more wickets on Sunday's last day to secure an unassailable 3-0 advantage with three Tests.
A loss would prolong the English team's winless run in Australia to 18 consecutive matches and ensure a fourth straight overseas Ashes defeat.
The current battle will be completed in only 11 days of play – after England fell the first two Tests in two and four days each.
Not since 1921, when the Australians completed victory in England in eight days, has the destination of the Ashes urn been decided so quickly. The hosts have also triumphed in 11 days on two other occasions in the modern era.
"This is disheartening," 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 certainly approach it with that mindset," he continued.
"The challenge has been tough. Australia is a formidable team. It was always going to be hard touring here against them. They entered as the favourites coming in to it have demonstrated their quality."
Ollie Pope's Place Under Scrutiny
Although the opener's performance in Adelaide probably answers doubts about his short-term future in the side, Pope appears under immense pressure for his spot in the fourth Test starting December 26th.
Pope fell for 17 in the team's second innings on day four, extending his poor record versus Australia.
In sixteen Ashes knocks, Pope has failed to score a half-century and averages 17.62.
Only one other England player in over a century – Amiss – has featured an equal number of innings in the top order in the Ashes and recorded a lower average.
But, Crawley said any notion Pope is being scrutinised comes from "the media" – meaning the press – "and not within the team."
"We all know how good of a player he is," added he. "Ollie has enjoyed a productive year if I'm honest."
"He has produced some really good knocks. This is noise from the outside. There's no discussion like that on Ollie amongst the players," Crawley concluded.
