The English opener Zak Crawley has indicated he was not familiar with statements made by captain Ben Stokes regarding the team environment not being "weak men".
The all-rounder delivered those words in several conversations following England's loss in the second match of the Ashes series against the Australians earlier this month.
Ahead of the Adelaide Test, where the visitors are staring at a series loss with a match to spare, the captain noted he had let his sentiment to "circulate freely" within the squad.
"I've done the necessary discussions over the past two days that I needed to have done," said the England leader.
But, after the opener scored a knock of 85 on the fourth day in the third Test, he commented: "I missed those remarks."
"I didn't see and wasn't really looking out for it. We take anything stated in the media with a pinch of salt," Crawley continued.
Frank Discussions and Consistent Messaging
Stokes made the "weak men" comment subsequent to his side were beaten in Brisbane to go 2-0 down.
The England squad afterwards went on a holiday to a Queensland resort in the gap between the second and the upcoming Tests.
Before the Adelaide contest, Stokes revealed his players had held "raw" talks and he had asked them to "display some fight" in their effort to remain alive in the series.
Yet, the Kent batsman asserted the messaging from the captain and coach Brendon McCullum had stayed in line with their prior tenure in charge.
"The atmosphere has been very positive, the same as always," said Crawley. "The focus is just trying to be optimistic, play our way, with great liberty. It felt like we could do an extraordinary feat going into this Test."
Australia Close of Rapid Series Victory
Crawley's wicket on day four came during a decisive three-wicket burst by Australian off-spinner Nathan Lyon.
The spinner's triple strike in 20 deliveries – he also bowled Brook and Stokes himself – meant England six down for 207 in pursuit of a daunting total of 435 runs.
Consequently, the home team need four wickets on the last day to secure an insurmountable 3-0 lead after three matches played.
Defeat will extend England's drought in this country to 18 consecutive matches and condemn them to a fourth successive away Ashes loss.
The current battle will be completed in just 11 days of cricket – after England losing the initial matches in rapid time each.
The last time 1921, when Australia completed victory in England in eight days, has the destination of the urn been determined so quickly. The hosts have also won in 11 days on two other occasions in the modern era.
"This is disheartening," admitted Crawley. "We came here to regain the Ashes and we're facing elimination at this point."
"There will still be significant pride at stake and we'll 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 to face them. They were the front-runners and they've proven why."
Ollie Pope's Place Under Scrutiny
Although Crawley's performance in the third Test likely secures questions about his short-term future in the side, Ollie Pope appears under threat for his spot in the Melbourne Test starting December 26th.
Pope fell for 17 in the team's second knock on Saturday, extending his poor record versus the old enemy.
Across 16 Ashes innings, Pope has never made a fifty and boasts an average of just 17.62.
A solitary other England player in over a century – Dennis Amiss – has featured as many times in the top order in the Ashes and returned a poorer average.
However, the opener said any suggestion Pope is under the microscope comes from "you guys" – referring to the journalists – "not inside the camp."
"We all know 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 from the outside. There is no chat like that regarding Pope amongst the players," Crawley concluded.
