England opener Zak Crawley has indicated he had no knowledge of comments from skipper Ben Stokes about the dressing room as no place for "weak men".
Stokes delivered those words in multiple interviews in the wake of England's loss in the second match of the Ashes series versus Australia previously.
Ahead of the third Test, where the visitors now face a series loss with a match to spare, the captain stated he had allowed his sentiment to "circulate freely" within the squad.
"I have completed all the talking over the past two days that I required," said the England leader.
However, after Crawley scored 85 on the fourth day in Adelaide, he commented: "I didn't see that."
"I didn't see and wasn't really looking out for it. We take everything that is said in the press with a pinch of salt," Crawley continued.
Raw Conversations and Steady Philosophy
Stokes made the "fragile individuals" observation subsequent to his side were beaten in Brisbane to fall two matches behind.
The England squad afterwards took a holiday to Noosa in the gap between the second and third matches.
Prior to this match, he said his players had held "honest" talks and he had asked them to "display some fight" in their effort to stay alive in the Ashes battle.
Yet, the Kent batsman stated the messaging from the captain and coach Brendon McCullum had stayed in line with their previous three years in charge.
"The atmosphere has been extremely upbeat, unchanged," said the opener. "The focus is on maintaining positivity, play our way, with great liberty. We believed we could do something special entering this Test."
Australia On the Verge of Rapid Ashes Triumph
The opener's wicket on day four was part of a crucial triple-strike by Australian off-spinner Lyon.
Lyon's triple strike in 20 deliveries – including the wickets of Harry Brook and Stokes himself – meant the chasing side 207-6 chasing a notional total of 435 runs.
This means, Australia require just four more wickets on Sunday's final day to move to an unassailable three-nil advantage with three Tests.
Defeat would prolong England's winless run in Australia to 18 Tests and condemn them to a fourth successive away Ashes loss.
This series will be completed in only eleven days of cricket – after England losing the first two Tests in two and four days respectively.
Not since 1921, when the Australians sealed victory in the UK in eight days, has the outcome of the urn been decided more swiftly. Australia have also won in 11 days on two other occasions in the 21st century.
"This is disappointing," admitted the batsman. "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'll definitely view it like that," Crawley added.
"It's been tough. Australia is a formidable side. It was always going to be hard touring here to face them. They entered as the front-runners and have demonstrated their quality."
Ollie Pope's Position In Question
While the opener's innings in Adelaide likely secures doubts about his immediate place in the England team, Pope looks under immense pressure for his spot in the fourth Test starting December 26th.
The Surrey batsman fell for 17 runs in the team's second innings on day four, extending his poor record against the old enemy.
Across 16 Ashes innings, the Surrey man has failed to score a fifty and boasts an average of 17.62.
A solitary other England player in over a century – Amiss – has played as many times in the top order in Ashes Tests and returned a lower average.
But, Crawley insisted any notion Pope is being scrutinised originates with "you guys" – referring to the journalists – "not inside the camp."
"We all know how good of a player he is," said he. "He has had a productive year if I'm honest."
"He has produced several excellent innings. It is noise from the outside. There is no chat of that nature regarding Pope amongst the players," he concluded.
