England opener Zak Crawley has indicated he had no knowledge of statements from captain Stokes regarding the team environment not being "those lacking fortitude".
The all-rounder made those words in multiple conversations following England's defeat in the second Ashes series versus Australia previously.
Ahead of the third Test, where the visitors now face a series loss at the earliest opportunity, the captain noted he had allowed his message to "circulate freely" among the squad.
"I have completed the necessary discussions in recent days that I needed to have done," remarked Stokes.
But, following the opener scored 85 on the fourth day in Adelaide, he commented: "I didn't see that."
"I wasn't actively searching for it. Our approach is to take everything that is said in the press with a pinch of salt," he added.
Frank Discussions and Steady Philosophy
Stokes made the "weak men" observation subsequent to his side suffered a loss in Brisbane to go two matches behind.
The England squad subsequently took a break to Noosa between the second and third matches.
Before this match, Stokes said his team had held "raw" talks and he had urged them to "display some fight" in their battle to stay alive in the series.
Yet, Crawley asserted the messaging from the captain and coach McCullum had remained in line with their prior tenure in charge.
"It's been extremely upbeat, the same as always," said Crawley. "It's just trying to be optimistic, play our way, with great liberty. It felt like we were capable of an extraordinary feat going into this game."
Australia On the Verge of Historic Series Victory
The opener's wicket on day four came during a crucial three-wicket burst by Australian spinner Nathan Lyon.
The spinner's triple strike in 20 deliveries – including the wickets of Brook and Ben Stokes – meant the chasing side six down for 207 in pursuit of a notional total of 435.
This means, Australia require just four more wickets on Sunday's final day to move to an unassailable 3-0 lead after three Tests.
Defeat will extend the English team's drought in Australia to 18 Tests and condemn them to a fourth successive away Ashes series loss.
This series will be completed in just 11 days of play – after England losing the first two Tests in rapid time respectively.
Not since 1921, when the Australians sealed a series win in England in eight days, has the destination of the Ashes urn been decided more swiftly. Australia have also triumphed in eleven days on two other instances in the modern era.
"It's disappointing," admitted the batsman. "Our goal was to win the Ashes and we're facing elimination now."
"There will still be plenty to play for and we'll definitely view it like that," he continued.
"It's been difficult. Australia is a formidable team. It was inevitably hard touring here against them. They were the front-runners coming in to it have demonstrated their quality."
Ollie Pope's Position In Question
While the opener's performance in the third Test likely secures questions about his immediate future in the England team, Pope appears under threat for his position in the fourth Test starting December 26th.
Pope fell for 17 in the team's second knock on day four, extending his poor record against Australia.
Across sixteen Ashes knocks, Pope has never made a half-century and averages just 17.62.
A solitary other English batsman in over a century – Dennis Amiss – has featured an equal number of innings in the top six in Ashes Tests and returned a poorer average.
But, Crawley said any notion Pope is under the microscope comes from "you guys" – meaning the press – "and not within the team."
"We all know how good of a player he is," said Crawley. "Ollie has enjoyed a good year to be frank."
"He has produced several excellent innings. This is noise from the outside. There's no chat of that nature regarding Pope amongst the players," he finished.
