England opening batter Zak Crawley suggested he had no knowledge of comments made by captain Stokes about the team environment not being "those lacking fortitude".
Stokes made those words in multiple conversations following England's defeat in the second Ashes series versus the Australians previously.
Ahead of the Adelaide Test, where the visitors are staring at defeat at the earliest opportunity, Stokes stated he had allowed his message to "drift around" among the squad.
"I have completed the necessary discussions over the past two days that I needed to have done," remarked Stokes.
But, after Crawley made a knock of 85 on the fourth day in the third Test, he commented: "I missed those remarks."
"I didn't see and wasn't really looking out for it. We take anything stated in the press with some skepticism," Crawley continued.
Frank Discussions and Steady Philosophy
The captain made the "fragile individuals" comment subsequent to his side were beaten in the second Test to go 2-0 down.
The England squad afterwards went on a break to a Queensland resort between the second and the upcoming Tests.
Before this match, he revealed his players had held "raw" conversations and he had urged them to "display some fight" in their effort to remain in contention in the series.
Yet, Crawley asserted the messaging from the captain and coach McCullum had stayed consistent with their previous three years in leadership.
"It's been extremely upbeat, the same as always," said the opener. "The focus is just trying to be optimistic, playing our brand, with great liberty. We believed we could do an extraordinary feat entering this game."
Australia Close of Historic Series Victory
The opener's wicket late on Saturday was part of a crucial triple-strike by Australia off-spinner Nathan Lyon.
Lyon's triple strike in a short spell – he also bowled Harry Brook and Ben Stokes – left the chasing side six down for 207 in pursuit of a daunting total of 435 runs.
Consequently, the home team require four wickets on the final day to move to an insurmountable 3-0 advantage after three matches played.
A loss will extend England's winless run in Australia to 18 Tests and ensure a fourth straight away Ashes defeat.
This series will be completed in just 11 days of cricket – with England fell the initial matches in rapid time each.
The last time 1921, when the Australians completed a series win in England in eight days, has the destination of the urn been decided so quickly. The hosts have also triumphed in 11 days on two other instances in the 21st century.
"It's disheartening," said Crawley. "We came here to win the Ashes and now we are facing elimination at this point."
"There remains significant pride at stake and we will definitely view it with that mindset," he continued.
"The challenge has been difficult. Australia is a formidable team. It was inevitably hard touring here against them. They entered as the front-runners coming in to it have demonstrated their quality."
Pope's Position Under Scrutiny
While the opener's performance in Adelaide likely secures doubts about his immediate future in the side, Pope appears under threat for his position in the Melbourne Test starting December 26th.
The Surrey batsman fell for 17 in England's second innings on day four, adding to his poor record versus Australia.
Across 16 Ashes innings, the Surrey man has never made a fifty and boasts an average of just 17.62.
A solitary other English batsman since 1900 – Amiss – has played an equal number of innings in the top six in the Ashes and returned a poorer average.
But, Crawley said any suggestion his teammate is under the microscope originates with "the media" – meaning the journalists – "and not within the team."
"We all know of his considerable talent," added he. "Ollie has enjoyed a productive year to be frank."
"He has produced several excellent innings. This is talk externally. There's no discussion like that on Ollie in the camp," he concluded.
