England opening batter Zak Crawley has indicated he had no knowledge of comments from skipper Ben Stokes regarding the dressing room not being "weak men".
Stokes delivered this message in several conversations following his team's defeat in the second match of the Ashes series versus the Australians earlier this month.
In the lead-up to the third Test, where the visitors now face defeat at the earliest opportunity, the captain noted he had let his message to "drift around" among the playing group.
"I've done all the talking over the past two days that I required," remarked the England leader.
However, after Crawley made a knock of 85 on the penultimate day in the third Test, he commented: "I missed those remarks."
"I wasn't actively searching for it. Our approach is to take everything that is said in the media with some skepticism," he added.
Frank Discussions and Steady Philosophy
The captain made the "weak men" observation after England suffered a loss in Brisbane to go 2-0 down.
The team afterwards went on a holiday to Noosa between the second and the upcoming matches.
Prior to the Adelaide contest, he revealed his players had held "honest" conversations and he had asked them to "show a bit of dog" in their effort to remain in contention in the Ashes battle.
Yet, Crawley asserted the guidance from Stokes and head coach McCullum had stayed in line with their previous three years in charge.
"It's been very positive, the same as always," said the opener. "The focus is just trying to be optimistic, play our way, with lots of freedom. It felt like we could do an extraordinary feat entering this game."
Australia Close of Historic Series Victory
The opener's wicket late on Saturday was part of a decisive three-wicket burst by Australian spinner Nathan Lyon.
The spinner's triple strike in 20 deliveries – including the wickets of Harry Brook and Ben Stokes – left the chasing side 207-6 chasing a daunting total of 435.
Consequently, the home team require just four more wickets on the final day to secure an unassailable 3-0 lead after three Tests.
A loss will extend England's drought in Australia to 18 Tests and ensure a fourth straight away Ashes series defeat.
This series is set to be decided in just 11 days of play – with England fell the initial matches in rapid time respectively.
The last time 1921, when the Australians completed victory in the UK in eight days, has the destination of the Ashes urn been determined so quickly. The hosts have also won in eleven days on two other occasions in the 21st century.
"This is disappointing," admitted the batsman. "We came here to win the Ashes and we're facing elimination now."
"There remains plenty to play for and we will certainly approach it like that," Crawley added.
"The challenge has been tough. Australia is a formidable side. It was always going to be hard touring here to face them. They were the front-runners coming in to it they've proven why."
Ollie Pope's Position Under Scrutiny
While Crawley's innings in the third Test likely secures questions about his short-term future in the England team, Pope looks under immense pressure for his position in the fourth Test starting December 26th.
Pope was out for 17 runs in the team's second innings on Saturday, extending his poor record against Australia.
Across sixteen Ashes knocks, the Surrey man has failed to score a half-century and averages 17.62.
A solitary other English batsman since 1900 – Dennis Amiss – has featured an equal number of innings in the top six in Ashes Tests and recorded a lower average.
However, Crawley insisted any notion his teammate is being scrutinised comes from "the media" – referring to the press – "and not within the team."
"We all know how good of a player he is," added Crawley. "Ollie has enjoyed a productive year if I'm honest."
"He has played some really good knocks. This is talk from the outside. There's no discussion of that nature on Ollie in the camp," he concluded.
