England opener Zak Crawley has indicated he was not familiar with statements made by skipper Stokes regarding the team environment as no place for "those lacking fortitude".
Stokes made this message in several conversations in the wake of his team's loss in the second Ashes versus Australia 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 let his sentiment to "drift around" within the squad.
"I have completed the necessary discussions in recent days that I needed to have done," said the England leader.
But, following Crawley made 85 on the penultimate day in Adelaide, he stated: "I missed those remarks."
"I didn't see and wasn't really looking out for it. We take everything that is said in the media with a pinch of salt," he added.
Raw Conversations and Steady Philosophy
The captain issued his "weak men" comment subsequent to his side were beaten in the second Test to fall 2-0 down.
The team subsequently took a break to a Queensland resort in the gap between the second and the upcoming matches.
Before this match, he revealed his players had held "raw" talks and he had urged them to "show a bit of dog" in their battle to stay alive in the series.
Yet, the Kent batsman stated the messaging from the captain and coach McCullum had stayed consistent with their previous tenure in charge.
"It's been extremely upbeat, the same as always," said Crawley. "The focus is on maintaining positivity, play our way, with lots of freedom. We believed we were capable of something special going into this game."
Australia Close of Rapid Series Victory
The opener's dismissal late on Saturday was part of a crucial triple-strike by Australian off-spinner Nathan Lyon.
Lyon's three wickets in 20 deliveries – including the wickets of Harry Brook and Ben Stokes – left the chasing side 207-6 chasing a notional total of 435 runs.
This means, the home team need four wickets on Sunday's final day to secure an insurmountable 3-0 advantage with three matches played.
Defeat will extend the English team's drought in Australia to 18 Tests and condemn them to a fourth successive overseas Ashes series defeat.
The current battle is set to be decided in just eleven days of play – after England fell the first two Tests in rapid time respectively.
Not since 1921, when the Australians completed a series win in England in eight days, has the destination of the urn been decided so quickly. Australia have also triumphed in eleven days on two other instances 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 will still be significant pride at stake and we will definitely view it with that mindset," he continued.
"The challenge has been tough. Australia is a very, very good side. It was inevitably hard coming here against them. They entered as the front-runners and have demonstrated their quality."
Pope's Place In Question
Although Crawley's innings in the third Test likely secures doubts about his short-term place in the side, Ollie Pope appears under threat for his spot in the Melbourne Test starting December 26th.
The Surrey batsman was out for 17 in the team's second knock on Saturday, adding to his modest returns against the old enemy.
In sixteen Ashes knocks, Pope has never made a fifty and averages just 17.62.
A solitary other English batsman since 1900 – Dennis Amiss – has played as many times in the top six in the Ashes and returned a lower average.
But, Crawley insisted any notion Pope is being scrutinised originates with "the media" – meaning the press – "and not within the team."
"The squad is fully aware how good of a player he is," added Crawley. "Ollie has enjoyed a productive year if I'm honest."
"He has produced some really good knocks. It is talk externally. There is no chat of that nature on Ollie in the camp," he concluded.
