The English opening batter Zak Crawley suggested he was not familiar with comments made by captain Ben Stokes about the dressing room not being "weak men".
The all-rounder delivered this message in several conversations in the wake of England's loss in the second Ashes versus the Australians earlier this month.
In the lead-up to the Adelaide Test, where the visitors now face defeat at the earliest opportunity, Stokes stated he had allowed his sentiment to "drift around" among the squad.
"I've done the necessary discussions over the past two days that I needed to have done," said the England leader.
But, after the opener scored 85 on the penultimate day in Adelaide, he commented: "I missed those remarks."
"I wasn't actively searching for it. Our approach is to take anything stated in the media with a pinch of salt," he added.
Frank Discussions and Consistent Messaging
Stokes made the "weak men" comment subsequent to England were beaten in Brisbane to go 2-0 down.
The team afterwards took a break to Noosa between the second and the upcoming matches.
Before the Adelaide contest, Stokes revealed his team had held "honest" talks and he had urged them to "display some fight" in their effort to remain alive in the series.
Nevertheless, Crawley stated the guidance from the captain and coach McCullum had remained consistent with their prior three years in charge.
"It's been very positive, unchanged," noted the opener. "It's on maintaining positivity, playing our brand, with lots of freedom. It felt like we were capable of an extraordinary feat going into this game."
The Hosts On the Verge of Historic Series Victory
The opener's dismissal on day four came during a decisive three-wicket burst by Australia off-spinner Lyon.
Lyon's three wickets in 20 deliveries – including the wickets of Brook and Ben Stokes – left the chasing side six down for 207 chasing a notional target of 435 runs.
Consequently, the home team require just four more wickets on Sunday's final day to move to an unassailable 3-0 advantage with three Tests.
A loss will extend the English team's winless run in this country to 18 consecutive matches and ensure a fourth successive overseas Ashes loss.
The current battle is set to be decided in only 11 days of play – after England losing the initial matches in two and four days respectively.
Not since 1921, when the Australians completed victory in the UK in eight days, has the outcome of the Ashes urn been determined more swiftly. Australia have also triumphed in 11 days on two other occasions in the modern era.
"This is disappointing," said Crawley. "We came here to regain the Ashes and now we are staring down the barrel now."
"There remains significant pride at stake and we'll definitely view it with that mindset," Crawley added.
"It's been tough. Australia is a formidable team. It was always going to be tough coming here to face them. They were the favourites and they've proven why."
Ollie Pope's Place In Question
While Crawley's innings in the third Test likely secures questions about his short-term future in the England team, Ollie Pope appears under threat for his position in the Melbourne Test starting December 26th.
The Surrey batsman was out for 17 runs in England's second knock on Saturday, adding to his poor record against Australia.
Across sixteen Ashes knocks, the Surrey man has failed to score a half-century and averages 17.62.
Only one other English batsman since 1900 – Amiss – has played as many times in the top order in Ashes Tests and recorded a lower average.
However, the opener insisted any notion Pope is being scrutinised originates with "you guys" – meaning the press – "not inside the camp."
"The squad is fully aware of his considerable talent," said Crawley. "Ollie has enjoyed a good year if I'm honest."
"He has played some really good knocks. It is noise from the outside. There's no discussion of that nature regarding Pope in the camp," Crawley finished.
