England opener Zak Crawley has indicated he had no knowledge of statements from captain Stokes regarding the team environment not being "those lacking fortitude".
Stokes made those words in multiple conversations in the wake of England's loss in the second match of the Ashes series against the Australians earlier this month.
In the lead-up to the third Test, where England now face a series loss at the earliest opportunity, Stokes stated he had allowed his message to "circulate freely" within the squad.
"I've done all the talking in recent days that I required," remarked Stokes.
However, following the opener scored 85 on the penultimate day in Adelaide, he stated: "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 some skepticism," Crawley continued.
Raw Conversations and Steady Philosophy
Stokes issued his "fragile individuals" observation subsequent to his side suffered a loss in Brisbane to go 2-0 down.
The England squad afterwards went on a break to a Queensland resort between the second and third matches.
Prior to the Adelaide contest, he revealed his players had held "raw" conversations and he had urged them to "display some fight" in their battle to stay alive in the series.
Nevertheless, the Kent batsman stated the messaging from the captain and head coach McCullum had stayed in line with their prior tenure in charge.
"It's been very positive, the same as always," noted the opener. "The focus is on maintaining positivity, play our way, with lots of freedom. We believed we could do an extraordinary feat entering this game."
The Hosts Close of Historic Ashes Triumph
The opener's dismissal late on Saturday was part of a crucial triple-strike by Australia off-spinner Nathan Lyon.
The spinner's three wickets in a short spell – he also bowled Harry Brook and Ben Stokes – left England six down for 207 in pursuit of a notional total of 435.
This means, the home team need just four more wickets on Sunday's final day to move to an unassailable 3-0 advantage with three Tests.
Defeat would prolong the English team's winless run in this country to 18 Tests and ensure a fourth straight overseas Ashes series defeat.
The current battle is set to be decided in just 11 days of cricket – with England losing the initial matches in two and four days respectively.
Not since 1921, when the Australians completed a series win in the UK in eight days, has the destination of the urn been decided so quickly. The hosts have also triumphed in eleven days on two other instances in the 21st century.
"This is disheartening," said the batsman. "Our goal was to win the Ashes and now we are facing elimination now."
"There remains plenty to play for and we'll certainly approach it with that mindset," Crawley added.
"The challenge has been tough. They're a formidable side. It was always going to be tough coming here to face them. They were the favourites coming in to it have demonstrated their quality."
Ollie Pope's Place In Question
While Crawley's innings in the third Test probably answers questions about his immediate future in the England team, Pope looks under immense pressure for his spot in the fourth Test starting December 26th.
Pope fell for 17 runs in the team's second innings on Saturday, adding to his poor record versus Australia.
In sixteen Ashes knocks, the Surrey man has failed to score a fifty and averages 17.62.
A solitary other England player since 1900 – Dennis Amiss – has featured an equal number of innings in the top order in Ashes Tests and returned a poorer average.
However, the opener said any notion his teammate is under the microscope comes from "the media" – meaning the press – "not inside the camp."
"The squad is fully aware of his considerable talent," added Crawley. "Ollie has enjoyed a productive year to be frank."
"He has played some really good knocks. This is noise externally. There is no chat like that regarding Pope amongst the players," he finished.
