England opening batter Zak Crawley suggested he was not familiar with comments made by skipper Ben Stokes about the team environment as no place for "those lacking fortitude".
Stokes delivered those words in multiple interviews in the wake of England's loss in the second Ashes series versus Australia earlier this month.
In the lead-up to the Adelaide Test, where the visitors now face defeat with a match to spare, the captain noted he had let his sentiment to "drift around" within the squad.
"I've done all the talking in recent days that I needed to have done," remarked the England leader.
But, after Crawley scored 85 on the penultimate day in the third Test, he stated: "I missed those remarks."
"I wasn't actively searching for it. Our approach is to take anything stated in the media with some skepticism," he added.
Raw Conversations and Consistent Messaging
Stokes issued his "fragile individuals" observation after his side suffered a loss in the second Test to go two matches behind.
The England squad subsequently went on a break to Noosa in the gap between the second and the upcoming 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 alive in the Ashes battle.
Nevertheless, the Kent batsman stated the guidance from Stokes and head coach Brendon McCullum had stayed in line with their previous tenure in charge.
"It's been very positive, the same as always," noted the opener. "It's just trying to be optimistic, playing our brand, with great liberty. We believed we could do an extraordinary feat entering this game."
Australia Close of Rapid Ashes Triumph
The opener's dismissal late on Saturday came during a decisive three-wicket burst by Australia off-spinner Lyon.
The spinner's three wickets in a short spell – including the wickets of Harry Brook and Stokes himself – meant England 207-6 in pursuit of a notional total of 435.
This means, the home team require just four more wickets on Sunday's final day to secure an unassailable 3-0 advantage after three matches played.
Defeat would prolong England's drought in Australia to 18 Tests and ensure a fourth straight away Ashes loss.
This series is set to be decided in only 11 days of play – with England fell the first two Tests in rapid time respectively.
The last time 1921, when Australia completed victory in England in eight days, has the outcome of the Ashes urn been determined so quickly. Australia have also won in eleven days on two other instances in the 21st century.
"This is disheartening," said Crawley. "Our goal was to regain the Ashes and we're staring down the barrel now."
"There will still be significant pride at stake and we'll definitely view it with that mindset," he continued.
"The challenge has been tough. They're a formidable team. It was inevitably tough coming here against them. They were the front-runners coming in to it have demonstrated their quality."
Pope's Place Under Scrutiny
While Crawley's performance in the third Test likely secures doubts about his short-term future in the side, Ollie Pope looks under immense pressure for his spot in the fourth Test starting December 26th.
The Surrey batsman fell for 17 in England's second knock on day four, adding to his poor record against the old enemy.
In 16 Ashes innings, Pope has never made a fifty and averages just 17.62.
Only one other England player since 1900 – Dennis Amiss – has featured as many times in the top six in the Ashes and recorded a lower average.
But, the opener insisted any suggestion his teammate is being scrutinised comes from "the media" – meaning the press – "and not within the team."
"We all know how good of a player he is," said Crawley. "Ollie has enjoyed a productive year to be frank."
"He has played some really good knocks. This is talk externally. There is no discussion of that nature regarding Pope amongst the players," Crawley finished.
