The English opener Zak Crawley has indicated he was not familiar with statements from skipper Ben Stokes regarding the team environment not being "weak men".
Stokes delivered this message in multiple conversations in the wake of England's defeat in the second Ashes versus the Australians earlier this month.
Ahead of the third Test, where England now face a series loss with a match to spare, Stokes 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," remarked Stokes.
But, after Crawley made 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. Our approach is to take everything that is said in the press with some skepticism," Crawley continued.
Raw Conversations and Steady Philosophy
Stokes made the "fragile individuals" comment after his side were beaten in the second Test to go two matches behind.
The England squad subsequently went on a holiday to Noosa between the second and the upcoming matches.
Prior to this match, Stokes said his team had held "honest" conversations and he had urged them to "display some fight" in their effort to stay in contention in the Ashes battle.
Yet, the Kent batsman asserted the guidance from Stokes and head coach Brendon McCullum had remained in line with their prior tenure in leadership.
"The atmosphere has been very positive, unchanged," said the opener. "It's just trying to be optimistic, play our way, with great liberty. It felt like we could do something special entering this game."
Australia On the Verge of Historic Ashes Triumph
The opener's wicket on day four was part of a crucial triple-strike by Australian off-spinner Nathan Lyon.
Lyon's three wickets in a short spell – he also bowled Harry Brook and Stokes himself – meant the chasing side six down for 207 in pursuit of a notional total of 435 runs.
Consequently, the home team need four wickets on the last day to move to an insurmountable three-nil advantage with three Tests.
Defeat would prolong the English team's drought in this country to 18 consecutive matches and condemn them to a fourth straight away Ashes loss.
This series will be completed in just 11 days of cricket – with England losing the first two Tests in rapid time each.
Not since 1921, when Australia sealed victory in England in eight days, has the outcome of the Ashes urn been decided so quickly. The hosts have also triumphed in 11 days on two other instances in the modern era.
"It's disappointing," said the batsman. "We came here to regain the Ashes and now we are staring down the barrel now."
"There remains significant pride at stake and we will definitely view it like that," he continued.
"The challenge has been difficult. Australia is a very, very good team. It was inevitably hard coming here to face them. They entered as the front-runners coming in to it have demonstrated their quality."
Ollie Pope's Position Under Scrutiny
Although Crawley's innings in the third Test probably answers questions about his short-term place in the side, Pope looks under immense pressure for his spot in the Melbourne Test starting December 26th.
The Surrey batsman fell for 17 in England's second knock on day four, extending his poor record against Australia.
Across sixteen Ashes knocks, the Surrey man has failed to score a fifty and boasts an average of just 17.62.
Only one other English batsman since 1900 – Amiss – has played an equal number of innings in the top order in the Ashes and recorded a lower average.
But, the opener insisted any notion Pope is under the microscope comes from "the media" – referring to the journalists – "and not within the team."
"We all know how good of a player he is," said he. "Ollie has enjoyed a good year to be frank."
"He has produced several excellent innings. This is talk from the outside. There's no discussion like that regarding Pope in the camp," Crawley finished.
