The English opening batter Zak Crawley has indicated he was not familiar with statements made by skipper Ben Stokes regarding the dressing room as no place for "weak men".
The all-rounder made this message in several conversations following England's defeat in the second Ashes versus Australia earlier this month.
In the lead-up to the third Test, where the visitors are staring at defeat at the earliest opportunity, Stokes noted he had allowed his sentiment to "drift around" among the squad.
"I've done the necessary discussions over the past two days that I needed to have done," said Stokes.
However, following Crawley made 85 on the penultimate day in Adelaide, he commented: "I missed those remarks."
"I didn't see and wasn't really looking out for it. Our approach is to take anything stated in the media with a pinch of salt," he added.
Frank Discussions and Steady Philosophy
Stokes made the "weak men" comment subsequent to England were beaten in the second Test to go 2-0 down.
The team afterwards went on a break to Noosa in the gap between the second and third Tests.
Before the Adelaide contest, Stokes revealed his players had held "honest" talks and he had urged them to "display some fight" in their effort to stay in contention in the series.
Nevertheless, Crawley stated the messaging from Stokes and head coach McCullum had stayed in line with their prior three years in leadership.
"It's been extremely upbeat, unchanged," said Crawley. "The focus is just trying to be optimistic, play our way, with lots of freedom. We believed we could do an extraordinary feat entering this Test."
The Hosts On the Verge of Rapid Series Victory
Crawley's wicket late on Saturday came during a decisive triple-strike by Australia off-spinner Lyon.
Lyon's three wickets in 20 deliveries – he also bowled Brook and Stokes himself – left the chasing side 207-6 chasing a notional target of 435 runs.
Consequently, Australia require just four more wickets on Sunday's last day to secure an unassailable three-nil advantage after three matches played.
Defeat would prolong the English team's winless run in this country to 18 consecutive matches and condemn them to a fourth straight away Ashes series defeat.
The current battle will be completed in just 11 days of play – with England losing the first two Tests in rapid time each.
The last time 1921, when Australia sealed victory in England in eight days, has the outcome of the urn been decided so quickly. The hosts have also won in 11 days on two other occasions in the modern era.
"It's disappointing," admitted Crawley. "Our goal was to regain the Ashes and now we are facing elimination now."
"There remains plenty to play for and we'll certainly approach it like that," he continued.
"The challenge has been difficult. They're a very, very good team. It was always going to be tough touring here against them. They entered as the front-runners and they've proven why."
Ollie Pope's Place In Question
While Crawley's innings in Adelaide probably answers doubts about his short-term place in the England team, Pope appears under immense pressure for his position in the Melbourne Test on Boxing Day.
Pope fell for 17 runs in the team's second innings on day four, adding to his modest returns against Australia.
Across 16 Ashes innings, Pope has never made a half-century and boasts an average of just 17.62.
A solitary other English batsman in over a century – Dennis Amiss – has featured an equal number of innings in the top six in Ashes Tests and recorded a lower average.
However, the opener insisted any suggestion Pope is under the microscope comes from "you guys" – referring to the journalists – "and not within the team."
"We all know how good of a player he is," added he. "Ollie has enjoyed a good year to be frank."
"He has played several excellent innings. It is talk from the outside. There is no discussion like that regarding Pope amongst the players," Crawley concluded.
