England opener Zak Crawley has indicated he was not familiar with statements from captain Ben Stokes regarding the dressing room as no place for "weak men".
Stokes delivered those words in multiple interviews in the wake of England's defeat in the second Ashes series against the Australians earlier this month.
Ahead of the third Test, where England are staring at a series loss at the earliest opportunity, Stokes noted he had let his message to "circulate freely" among the playing group.
"I have completed the necessary discussions in recent days that I required," remarked Stokes.
But, following Crawley scored a knock of 85 on the penultimate day in the third Test, he stated: "I didn't see that."
"I wasn't actively searching for it. Our approach is to take everything that is said in the media with some skepticism," he added.
Frank Discussions and Steady Philosophy
The captain issued his "fragile individuals" comment after his side suffered a loss in the second Test to go 2-0 down.
The England squad afterwards took a break to a Queensland resort in the gap between the second and the upcoming matches.
Prior to this match, Stokes said his players had held "raw" talks and he had urged them to "show a bit of dog" in their battle to remain in contention in the Ashes battle.
Nevertheless, Crawley stated the messaging from Stokes and head coach Brendon McCullum had stayed in line with their previous three years in charge.
"The atmosphere has been extremely upbeat, the same as always," said Crawley. "The focus is on maintaining positivity, playing our brand, with lots of freedom. It felt like we could do an extraordinary feat going into this game."
Australia On the Verge of Rapid Series Victory
Crawley's wicket late on Saturday came during a decisive triple-strike by Australian spinner Nathan Lyon.
The spinner's triple strike in a short spell – including the wickets of Brook and Ben Stokes – meant England six down for 207 chasing a notional total of 435.
This means, the home team require just four more wickets on Sunday's last day to move to an insurmountable 3-0 lead with three matches played.
Defeat will extend England's drought in this country to 18 Tests and ensure a fourth successive overseas Ashes defeat.
This series will be completed in just 11 days of cricket – after England losing the first two Tests in two and four days each.
Not since 1921, when the Australians completed victory in England in eight days, has the destination of the Ashes urn been determined so quickly. Australia have also triumphed in 11 days on two other instances in the 21st century.
"It's disheartening," admitted Crawley. "Our goal was to regain the Ashes and we're facing elimination at this point."
"There will still be plenty to play for and we will certainly approach it like that," he continued.
"The challenge has been tough. Australia is a very, very good side. It was always going to be hard coming here against them. They entered as the front-runners coming in to it they've proven why."
Pope's Position Under Scrutiny
While Crawley's innings in the third Test probably answers questions about his short-term place in the side, Ollie Pope looks under threat for his spot in the fourth Test on Boxing Day.
The Surrey batsman was out for 17 runs 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.
Only one other English batsman in over a century – Dennis Amiss – has featured as many times in the top order in the Ashes and recorded a lower average.
However, Crawley insisted any suggestion Pope is being scrutinised originates with "you guys" – meaning the press – "not inside the camp."
"The squad is fully aware how good of a player he is," said Crawley. "He has had a good year to be frank."
"He has played some really good knocks. This is talk externally. There is no chat of that nature on Ollie in the camp," he finished.
