England opener Zak Crawley has indicated he was not familiar with comments from skipper Stokes about the dressing room not being "those lacking fortitude".
The all-rounder delivered this message in several conversations following his team's loss in the second Ashes series against Australia previously.
In the lead-up to the third Test, where the visitors are staring at a series loss at the earliest opportunity, Stokes noted he had allowed his message to "drift around" among the playing group.
"I've done all the talking in recent days that I needed to have done," remarked Stokes.
But, after Crawley scored a knock of 85 on the fourth day in the third Test, he stated: "I didn't see that."
"I wasn't actively searching for it. Our approach is to take anything stated in the media with some skepticism," Crawley continued.
Frank Discussions and Consistent Messaging
The captain issued his "weak men" comment subsequent to England were beaten in Brisbane to fall two matches behind.
The team subsequently went on a holiday to Noosa between the second and the upcoming Tests.
Before this match, he said his team had held "raw" conversations and he had urged them to "show a bit of dog" in their effort to remain in contention in the Ashes battle.
Yet, the Kent batsman asserted the guidance from Stokes and head coach McCullum had stayed in line with their prior tenure in charge.
"It's been very positive, the same as always," said Crawley. "It's on maintaining positivity, play our way, with lots of freedom. We believed we were capable of an extraordinary feat entering this Test."
The Hosts On the Verge of Rapid Series Victory
The opener's dismissal late on Saturday was part of a crucial triple-strike by Australian spinner Lyon.
Lyon's three wickets in 20 deliveries – he also bowled Brook and Stokes himself – left England six down for 207 chasing a daunting total of 435 runs.
This means, the home team need four wickets on the final day to move to an insurmountable three-nil advantage with three matches played.
Defeat will extend England's drought in Australia to 18 Tests and condemn them to a fourth straight overseas Ashes loss.
The current battle will be completed in only eleven days of cricket – with England fell the first two Tests in rapid time respectively.
The last time 1921, when Australia completed a series win in England in eight days, has the destination of the urn been decided more swiftly. Australia have also triumphed in 11 days on two other occasions in the modern era.
"This is disappointing," admitted Crawley. "We came here to win the Ashes and now we are facing elimination at this point."
"There remains plenty to play for and we will definitely view it with that mindset," he continued.
"It's been tough. Australia is a very, very good team. It was always going to be tough coming here against them. They were the favourites and have demonstrated their quality."
Ollie Pope's Position Under Scrutiny
Although 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 fourth Test starting December 26th.
Pope fell for 17 in England's second knock on day four, extending his modest returns against the old enemy.
In 16 Ashes innings, Pope has failed to score a fifty and averages just 17.62.
Only one other England player since 1900 – Dennis Amiss – has featured an equal number of innings in the top six in Ashes Tests and recorded a lower average.
However, Crawley insisted any notion his teammate is under the microscope originates with "the media" – referring to the journalists – "not inside the camp."
"The squad is fully aware of his considerable talent," added Crawley. "He has had a good year to be frank."
"He has produced several excellent innings. This is noise from the outside. There is no chat like that regarding Pope in the camp," Crawley concluded.
