England opening batter Zak Crawley suggested he was not familiar with statements made by captain Ben Stokes regarding the team environment as no place for "those lacking fortitude".
Stokes delivered those words in several conversations following England's loss in the second match of the Ashes series versus Australia earlier this month.
Ahead of the Adelaide Test, where the visitors are staring at defeat with a match to spare, the captain noted he had let his message to "drift around" within the squad.
"I've done the necessary discussions over the past two days that I required," remarked Stokes.
But, after Crawley made a knock of 85 on the penultimate day in Adelaide, he commented: "I missed those remarks."
"I wasn't actively searching for it. Our approach is to take anything stated in the press with a pinch of salt," Crawley continued.
Raw Conversations and Steady Philosophy
Stokes issued his "weak men" comment subsequent to England suffered a loss in Brisbane to go 2-0 down.
The team subsequently took a holiday to Noosa between the second and third matches.
Before the Adelaide contest, Stokes said his players had held "raw" talks and he had urged them to "display some fight" in their battle to remain alive in the Ashes battle.
Yet, the Kent batsman asserted the guidance from the captain and coach Brendon McCullum had remained in line with their previous tenure in leadership.
"The atmosphere has been very positive, the same as always," noted the opener. "It's on maintaining positivity, playing our brand, with lots of freedom. We believed we could do something special entering this Test."
The Hosts Close of Historic Ashes Triumph
Crawley's wicket late on Saturday came during a crucial triple-strike by Australia spinner Nathan Lyon.
Lyon's triple strike in a short spell – including the wickets of Harry Brook and Stokes himself – left England 207-6 in pursuit of a notional total of 435 runs.
This means, the home team require four wickets on the final day to secure an unassailable 3-0 lead after three Tests.
Defeat would prolong England's drought in Australia to 18 consecutive matches and ensure a fourth straight away Ashes defeat.
The current battle will be completed in just eleven days of cricket – after England losing the initial matches in two and four days each.
The last time 1921, when the Australians completed victory in England in eight days, has the destination of the Ashes urn been determined more swiftly. The hosts have also won in eleven days on two other occasions in the 21st century.
"It's disheartening," said the batsman. "We came here to regain the Ashes and now we are facing elimination at this point."
"There will still be significant pride at stake and we'll certainly approach it with that mindset," Crawley added.
"It's been tough. Australia is a formidable team. It was inevitably tough coming here against them. They were the favourites coming in to it they've proven why."
Ollie Pope's Position Under Scrutiny
Although Crawley's performance in Adelaide likely secures doubts about his short-term place in the England team, Ollie Pope looks under threat for his spot in the fourth Test on Boxing Day.
Pope was out for 17 in the team's second knock on day four, extending his modest returns against the old enemy.
In 16 Ashes innings, the Surrey man has failed to score a fifty and averages just 17.62.
Only one other English batsman since 1900 – Dennis Amiss – has played an equal number of innings in the top six in the Ashes and returned a poorer average.
But, the opener said any suggestion his teammate is under the microscope originates with "you guys" – referring to the press – "not inside the camp."
"We all know of his considerable talent," said he. "Ollie has enjoyed a productive year if I'm honest."
"He has produced some really good knocks. It is talk from the outside. There is no chat of that nature regarding Pope amongst the players," Crawley concluded.
