England opening batter Zak Crawley has indicated he was not familiar with comments from captain Ben Stokes regarding the dressing room not being "weak men".
The all-rounder made those words in several interviews following England's defeat in the second match of the Ashes against the Australians earlier this month.
Ahead of the Adelaide Test, where England now face a series loss at the earliest opportunity, the captain stated he had allowed his message to "drift around" among the squad.
"I've done all the talking over the past two days that I needed to have done," said Stokes.
However, after Crawley made a knock of 85 on the penultimate day in Adelaide, he stated: "I didn't see that."
"I wasn't actively searching for it. Our approach is to take everything that is said in the media with a pinch of salt," he added.
Frank Discussions and Steady Philosophy
The captain made the "fragile individuals" observation subsequent to England suffered a loss in Brisbane to go 2-0 down.
The team afterwards went on a holiday to a Queensland resort in the gap between the second and third matches.
Before this match, he said his team had held "honest" conversations and he had asked them to "show a bit of dog" in their battle to stay alive in the series.
Yet, the Kent batsman stated the messaging from the captain and head coach Brendon McCullum had stayed consistent with their previous three years in leadership.
"The atmosphere has been extremely upbeat, the same as always," noted Crawley. "It's on maintaining positivity, playing our brand, with lots of freedom. It felt like we were capable of an extraordinary feat entering this Test."
The Hosts On the Verge of Historic Series Victory
The opener's wicket late on Saturday came during a decisive three-wicket burst by Australian off-spinner Lyon.
Lyon's triple strike in a short spell – including the wickets of Brook and Stokes himself – left England 207-6 chasing a notional target of 435.
This means, Australia need just four more wickets on Sunday's last day to move to an insurmountable 3-0 lead with three matches played.
A loss will extend England's winless run in Australia to 18 consecutive matches and ensure a fourth successive away Ashes series defeat.
The current battle is set to be decided in only eleven days of play – with England fell the first two Tests in two and four days respectively.
Not since 1921, when the Australians completed victory in the UK in eight days, has the destination of the Ashes urn been decided more swiftly. Australia have also triumphed in 11 days on two other instances in the modern era.
"This is disappointing," said the batsman. "Our goal was to regain the Ashes and we're staring down the barrel now."
"There will still be plenty to play for and we will certainly approach it with that mindset," Crawley added.
"The challenge has been tough. They're a very, very good side. It was always going to be tough coming here against them. They were the front-runners coming in to it they've proven why."
Pope's Place In Question
While the opener's innings in the third Test likely secures questions about his immediate future in the side, Ollie Pope looks under immense pressure for his spot in the Melbourne Test starting December 26th.
Pope was out for 17 runs in the team's second innings on Saturday, extending his poor record against Australia.
In sixteen Ashes knocks, the Surrey man has never made a fifty and averages just 17.62.
A solitary other England player since 1900 – Dennis Amiss – has played as many times in the top six in Ashes Tests and returned a lower average.
But, the opener said any suggestion his teammate is under the microscope originates with "the media" – referring to the press – "and not within the team."
"We all know of his considerable talent," added he. "Ollie has enjoyed a good year to be frank."
"He has produced some really good knocks. This is talk from the outside. There is no discussion of that nature regarding Pope in the camp," Crawley concluded.
