The English opening batter Zak Crawley has indicated he was not familiar with comments made by skipper Ben Stokes regarding the dressing room not being "weak men".
Stokes made those words in multiple interviews in the wake of England's loss in the second match of the Ashes against Australia previously.
Ahead of the Adelaide Test, where England are staring at defeat with a match to spare, Stokes noted he had let his message to "drift around" within the playing group.
"I have completed all the talking in recent days that I required," remarked the England leader.
However, following Crawley scored 85 on the penultimate day in the third Test, he stated: "I missed those remarks."
"I didn't see and wasn't really looking out for it. We take anything stated in the press with a pinch of salt," Crawley continued.
Raw Conversations and Consistent Messaging
The captain issued his "fragile individuals" comment subsequent to England were beaten in the second Test to fall 2-0 down.
The England squad subsequently went on a holiday to Noosa between the second and third Tests.
Prior to the Adelaide contest, Stokes said his players had held "raw" conversations and he had urged them to "display some fight" in their battle to remain alive in the series.
Yet, the Kent batsman asserted the guidance from Stokes and coach McCullum had stayed in line with their previous tenure in leadership.
"The atmosphere has been extremely upbeat, unchanged," said the opener. "It's on maintaining positivity, play our way, with great liberty. We believed we could do something special going into this Test."
The Hosts Close of Historic Ashes Triumph
The opener's dismissal late on Saturday was part of a decisive triple-strike by Australian spinner Nathan Lyon.
Lyon's triple strike in a short spell – he also bowled Brook and Stokes himself – meant the chasing side 207-6 chasing a notional target of 435.
Consequently, Australia require four wickets on the final day to secure an insurmountable 3-0 lead with three Tests.
A loss would prolong England's winless run in this country to 18 consecutive matches and condemn them to a fourth straight away Ashes defeat.
This series is set to be decided in only 11 days of play – after England losing the first two Tests in rapid time respectively.
Not since 1921, when the Australians completed a series win in the UK in eight days, has the outcome of the urn been decided more swiftly. The hosts have also triumphed in eleven days on two other occasions in the 21st century.
"It's disappointing," admitted Crawley. "We came here to regain the Ashes and we're facing elimination now."
"There will still be significant pride at stake and we will certainly approach it like that," Crawley added.
"The challenge has been difficult. Australia is a very, very good side. It was always going to be tough coming here against them. They entered as the front-runners coming in to it have demonstrated their quality."
Ollie Pope's Place In Question
While the opener's innings in the third Test probably answers questions about his immediate future in the England team, Ollie Pope appears under immense pressure for his position in the Melbourne Test on Boxing Day.
Pope was out for 17 in England's second innings on day four, adding to his poor record against Australia.
Across sixteen Ashes knocks, Pope has never made a fifty and boasts an average of 17.62.
Only one other English batsman since 1900 – Dennis Amiss – has played as many times in the top six in the Ashes and returned a poorer average.
But, Crawley said any notion his teammate is under the microscope comes from "the media" – referring to the press – "not inside the camp."
"The squad is fully aware of his considerable talent," added Crawley. "Ollie has enjoyed a productive year to be frank."
"He has produced some really good knocks. It is noise externally. There's no discussion of that nature on Ollie in the camp," Crawley finished.
