The English opening batter Zak Crawley has indicated he had no knowledge of comments from captain Ben Stokes about the dressing room not being "weak men".
The all-rounder delivered this message in several interviews following England's defeat in the second Ashes series versus the Australians earlier this month.
In the lead-up to the Adelaide Test, where the visitors are staring at a series loss at the earliest opportunity, the captain stated he had allowed his message to "circulate freely" within the squad.
"I've done all the talking over the past two days that I required," remarked the England leader.
However, following the opener made 85 on the fourth day in Adelaide, he stated: "I didn't see that."
"I didn't see and wasn't really looking out for it. Our approach is to take everything that is said in the press with some skepticism," Crawley continued.
Raw Conversations and Consistent Messaging
Stokes made the "fragile individuals" comment subsequent to England suffered a loss in the second Test to go 2-0 down.
The team subsequently went on a holiday to Noosa between the second and third Tests.
Prior to the Adelaide contest, Stokes revealed his team had held "honest" talks and he had asked them to "display some fight" in their battle to stay alive in the series.
Yet, Crawley asserted the messaging from the captain and coach McCullum had remained in line with their previous three years in charge.
"It's been very positive, the same as always," noted Crawley. "The focus is just trying to be optimistic, playing our brand, with lots of freedom. We believed we could do something special entering this game."
The Hosts Close of Rapid Series Victory
Crawley's dismissal on day four was part of a decisive triple-strike by Australian spinner Nathan Lyon.
Lyon's three wickets in a short spell – including the wickets of Brook and Stokes himself – meant England 207-6 chasing a notional target of 435 runs.
This means, Australia need four wickets on the last day to secure an insurmountable 3-0 lead with three Tests.
Defeat would prolong England's winless run in Australia to 18 Tests and condemn them to a fourth successive overseas Ashes series loss.
The current battle will be completed in only 11 days of play – with 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 more swiftly. The hosts have also won in 11 days on two other occasions in the modern era.
"This is disappointing," admitted the batsman. "Our goal was to regain the Ashes and we're facing elimination at this point."
"There remains plenty to play for and we will certainly approach it like that," Crawley added.
"It's been difficult. Australia is a formidable side. It was always going to be hard touring here to face them. They entered as the front-runners coming in to it have demonstrated their quality."
Pope's Position In Question
Although Crawley's performance in Adelaide likely secures questions about his short-term future in the side, Pope appears under immense pressure for his spot in the fourth Test starting December 26th.
Pope fell for 17 runs in England's second knock on Saturday, adding to his poor record versus the old enemy.
In 16 Ashes innings, Pope has never made a half-century and averages just 17.62.
A solitary other England player in over a century – Dennis Amiss – has played an equal number of innings in the top order in the Ashes and recorded a lower average.
But, the opener said any suggestion his teammate is under the microscope comes from "you guys" – referring to the press – "not inside the camp."
"The squad is fully aware how good of a player he is," added he. "He has had a productive year if I'm honest."
"He has played several excellent innings. It is noise from the outside. There's no discussion of that nature regarding Pope in the camp," Crawley concluded.
