England opening batter Zak Crawley suggested he was not familiar with comments made by captain Ben Stokes about the team environment not being "weak men".
The all-rounder delivered this message in several conversations in the wake of England's loss in the second Ashes versus the Australians previously.
In the lead-up to the Adelaide Test, where England are staring at a series loss with a match to spare, the captain noted he had allowed his sentiment to "drift around" among the squad.
"I have completed the necessary discussions in recent days that I needed to have done," said the England leader.
However, after Crawley made 85 on the fourth day in Adelaide, he commented: "I missed those remarks."
"I wasn't actively searching for it. Our approach is to take anything stated in the press with some skepticism," Crawley continued.
Frank Discussions and Steady Philosophy
The captain made the "weak men" observation subsequent to his side suffered a loss in Brisbane to go two matches behind.
The team afterwards went on a holiday to Noosa in the gap between the second and the upcoming Tests.
Prior to this match, Stokes revealed his players had held "raw" conversations and he had urged them to "show a bit of dog" in their battle to stay alive in the series.
Nevertheless, the Kent batsman asserted the guidance from the captain and head coach McCullum had stayed in line with their previous three years in charge.
"The atmosphere has been very positive, the same as always," noted Crawley. "It's on maintaining positivity, play our way, with great liberty. We believed we could do an extraordinary feat entering this game."
The Hosts On the Verge of Rapid Ashes Triumph
Crawley's dismissal late on Saturday came during a decisive three-wicket burst by Australian off-spinner Nathan Lyon.
Lyon's triple strike in a short spell – including the wickets of Harry Brook and Stokes himself – meant the chasing side six down for 207 chasing a daunting target of 435.
Consequently, the home team need just four more wickets on Sunday's final day to move to an unassailable three-nil advantage with three matches played.
A loss would prolong the English team's winless run in Australia to 18 consecutive matches and ensure a fourth successive overseas Ashes loss.
This series is set to be decided in only eleven days of cricket – with England fell the first two Tests in rapid time each.
Not since 1921, when the Australians sealed victory in England in eight days, has the destination of the Ashes urn been decided so quickly. The hosts have also won in eleven days on two other occasions in the 21st century.
"It's disheartening," said Crawley. "We came here to regain the Ashes and now we are staring down the barrel now."
"There remains significant pride at stake and we'll definitely view it with that mindset," he continued.
"It's been difficult. Australia is a formidable side. It was inevitably tough coming here to face them. They entered as the front-runners and have demonstrated their quality."
Pope's Position Under Scrutiny
Although Crawley's performance in the third Test likely secures doubts about his short-term place in the side, Pope looks under immense pressure for his spot in the fourth Test starting December 26th.
Pope was out for 17 runs in England's second innings on day four, adding to his poor record versus the old enemy.
Across 16 Ashes innings, the Surrey man has failed to score a half-century and averages just 17.62.
Only one other English batsman since 1900 – Amiss – has played as many times in the top order in Ashes Tests and returned a lower average.
However, Crawley insisted any suggestion Pope is under the microscope comes from "you guys" – meaning the journalists – "and not within the team."
"The squad is fully aware how good of a player he is," added he. "He has had a productive year to be frank."
"He has produced several excellent innings. It is talk externally. There's no chat of that nature regarding Pope amongst the players," he concluded.
