England opener Zak Crawley suggested he had no knowledge of statements made by skipper Ben Stokes about the dressing room not being "those lacking fortitude".
Stokes delivered this message in several conversations in the wake of his team's loss in the second Ashes series versus the Australians earlier this month.
Ahead of the Adelaide Test, where the visitors now face a series loss with a match to spare, the captain noted he had allowed his sentiment to "circulate freely" within the playing group.
"I've done all the talking over the past two days that I needed to have done," said Stokes.
However, after Crawley scored 85 on the fourth day in the third Test, he stated: "I missed those remarks."
"I didn't see and wasn't really looking out for it. We take anything stated in the press with a pinch of salt," Crawley continued.
Frank Discussions and Steady Philosophy
The captain made the "weak men" comment after his side suffered a loss in Brisbane to go two matches behind.
The team afterwards took a holiday to Noosa between the second and third matches.
Prior to this match, he revealed his team had held "raw" talks and he had asked them to "display some fight" in their effort to remain in contention in the Ashes battle.
Nevertheless, the Kent batsman asserted the messaging from the captain and head coach Brendon McCullum had stayed consistent with their prior tenure in leadership.
"It's been extremely upbeat, unchanged," said the opener. "It's just trying to be optimistic, play our way, with lots of freedom. We believed we were capable of something special entering this Test."
Australia Close of Historic Ashes Triumph
The opener's wicket late on Saturday came during a crucial triple-strike by Australian spinner Lyon.
Lyon's triple strike in a short spell – including the wickets of Harry Brook and Stokes himself – left the chasing side six down for 207 chasing a daunting target of 435 runs.
This means, the home team need four wickets on the last day to secure an unassailable three-nil lead after three matches played.
A loss will extend England's winless run in Australia to 18 Tests and condemn them to a fourth successive overseas Ashes series defeat.
This series is set to be decided in just eleven days of cricket – after England losing the first two Tests in two and four days each.
The last time 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 disappointing," said Crawley. "We came here to regain the Ashes and we're facing elimination now."
"There will still be significant pride at stake and we will definitely view it like that," he continued.
"It's been difficult. Australia is a formidable team. It was always going to be tough touring here against them. They were the front-runners coming in to it they've proven why."
Ollie Pope's Place Under Scrutiny
Although Crawley's performance in Adelaide probably answers doubts about his immediate place in the England team, Ollie Pope appears under threat for his spot in the Melbourne Test starting December 26th.
Pope was out for 17 in the team's second knock on Saturday, extending his poor record versus the old enemy.
Across sixteen Ashes knocks, Pope has never made a fifty and averages 17.62.
A solitary other English batsman since 1900 – Amiss – has played an equal number of innings in the top order in Ashes Tests and recorded a lower average.
But, the opener said any suggestion Pope is under the microscope originates with "the media" – meaning the press – "not inside the camp."
"The squad is fully aware of his considerable talent," said he. "Ollie has enjoyed a productive year if I'm honest."
"He has produced some really good knocks. This is talk from the outside. There's no discussion like that regarding Pope amongst the players," he concluded.
