England opening batter Zak Crawley has indicated he had no knowledge of comments made by skipper Ben Stokes about the dressing room not being "weak men".
Stokes made those words in several interviews in the wake of England's loss in the second Ashes against the Australians previously.
Ahead of the Adelaide Test, where England now face defeat at the earliest opportunity, Stokes stated he had let his sentiment to "drift around" among the playing group.
"I have completed all the talking over the past two days that I needed to have done," remarked Stokes.
But, after the opener scored 85 on the fourth 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 press with some skepticism," he added.
Frank Discussions and Consistent Messaging
Stokes issued his "fragile individuals" comment after England were beaten in Brisbane to go 2-0 down.
The England squad subsequently went on a break to a Queensland resort between the second and third Tests.
Before the Adelaide contest, he revealed his players had held "raw" talks and he had asked them to "show a bit of dog" in their effort to stay alive in the series.
Nevertheless, Crawley asserted the messaging from Stokes and head coach Brendon McCullum had remained consistent with their prior tenure in leadership.
"The atmosphere has been extremely upbeat, the same as always," noted Crawley. "It's just trying to be optimistic, play our way, with lots of freedom. We believed we could do an extraordinary feat going into this Test."
The Hosts On the Verge of Rapid Series Victory
Crawley's dismissal late on Saturday was part of a crucial three-wicket burst by Australia off-spinner Nathan Lyon.
Lyon's three wickets in a short spell – including the wickets of Brook and Stokes himself – left England 207-6 in pursuit of a notional total of 435.
Consequently, Australia need just four more wickets on Sunday's final day to move to an insurmountable 3-0 advantage after three matches played.
A loss would prolong England's winless run in this country to 18 Tests and ensure a fourth straight away Ashes defeat.
This series is set to be decided in just 11 days of play – after England losing the initial matches in rapid time respectively.
The last time 1921, when Australia completed victory in the UK in eight days, has the destination of the Ashes urn been determined so quickly. Australia have also won in 11 days on two other occasions in the 21st century.
"This is disappointing," said the batsman. "We came here to regain the Ashes and we're staring down the barrel at this point."
"There remains significant pride at stake and we'll certainly approach it with that mindset," he continued.
"It's been tough. They're a very, very good side. It was always going to be tough coming here to face them. They entered as the front-runners and they've proven why."
Pope's Position In Question
Although Crawley's innings in Adelaide likely secures doubts about his short-term future in the England team, Pope looks under immense pressure for his spot in the Melbourne Test on Boxing Day.
The Surrey batsman was out for 17 in England's second knock on Saturday, adding to his modest returns against the old enemy.
Across sixteen Ashes knocks, the Surrey man has never made a half-century and averages just 17.62.
A solitary other English batsman in over a century – Amiss – has played as many times in the top six in Ashes Tests and recorded a lower average.
However, the opener insisted any suggestion his teammate is under the microscope comes from "the media" – meaning the press – "and not within the team."
"The squad is fully aware of his considerable talent," added he. "He has had a productive year to be frank."
"He has produced several excellent innings. This is noise externally. There's no discussion of that nature on Ollie in the camp," he finished.
