England 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".
The all-rounder made those words in multiple conversations in the wake of his team's defeat in the second match of the Ashes series against Australia earlier this month.
Ahead of the third Test, where the visitors now face a series loss with a match to spare, the captain stated he had let his sentiment to "drift around" within the playing group.
"I have completed the necessary discussions in recent days that I needed to have done," said Stokes.
However, following the opener made 85 on the fourth day in Adelaide, he commented: "I didn't see that."
"I wasn't actively searching for it. We take everything that is said in the media with some skepticism," he added.
Frank Discussions and Steady Philosophy
The captain issued his "weak men" observation after England suffered a loss in the second Test to fall 2-0 down.
The England squad afterwards went on a holiday to Noosa between the second and third matches.
Prior to the Adelaide contest, Stokes said his players had held "raw" conversations and he had urged them to "show a bit of dog" in their battle to remain alive in the series.
Nevertheless, the Kent batsman stated the messaging from Stokes and head coach McCullum had remained consistent with their prior tenure in charge.
"The atmosphere has been very positive, unchanged," noted Crawley. "The focus is on maintaining positivity, playing our brand, with lots of freedom. We believed we could do something special entering this game."
Australia On the Verge of Historic Series Victory
Crawley's dismissal late on Saturday was part of a crucial three-wicket burst by Australia off-spinner Lyon.
Lyon's triple strike in 20 deliveries – he also bowled Harry Brook and Ben Stokes – left the chasing side six down for 207 in pursuit of a notional total of 435.
This means, the home team require just four more wickets on the final day to secure an unassailable three-nil advantage with three matches played.
Defeat would prolong England's drought in this country to 18 Tests and ensure a fourth straight overseas Ashes loss.
The current battle is set to be decided in only 11 days of play – with England losing the initial matches in rapid time respectively.
Not since 1921, when Australia sealed victory in the UK in eight days, has the destination of the urn been determined so quickly. The hosts have also triumphed in eleven days on two other occasions in the 21st century.
"This is disappointing," said the batsman. "Our goal was to regain the Ashes and now we are staring down the barrel now."
"There will still be significant pride at stake and we'll definitely view it like that," Crawley added.
"The challenge has been tough. They're a very, very good team. It was inevitably tough coming here against them. They were the front-runners and have demonstrated their quality."
Pope's Position In Question
While the opener's innings in the third Test likely secures questions about his immediate place in the side, Pope looks under threat for his position in the Melbourne Test starting December 26th.
Pope was out for 17 runs in England's second knock on day four, extending his poor record versus Australia.
Across 16 Ashes innings, the Surrey man has never made a fifty and averages just 17.62.
Only one other English batsman since 1900 – Dennis Amiss – has played an equal number of innings in the top order in Ashes Tests and recorded a poorer average.
But, the opener said any notion Pope is being scrutinised comes from "you guys" – meaning the journalists – "and not within the team."
"We all know of his considerable talent," said he. "He has had a productive year to be frank."
"He has played several excellent innings. It is noise externally. There is no chat like that on Ollie in the camp," Crawley concluded.
