The English opening batter Zak Crawley suggested he was not familiar with comments made by captain Ben Stokes regarding the team environment not being "weak men".
The all-rounder delivered those words in several interviews following England's loss in the second match of the Ashes series against the Australians earlier this month.
Ahead of the Adelaide Test, where England are staring at defeat at the earliest opportunity, the captain stated he had let his message to "circulate freely" within the playing group.
"I have completed all the talking in recent days that I needed to have done," said the England leader.
But, following the opener scored a knock of 85 on the fourth day in Adelaide, 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 a pinch of salt," Crawley continued.
Frank Discussions and Steady Philosophy
Stokes issued his "weak men" comment after England suffered a loss in the second Test to go 2-0 down.
The England squad afterwards went on a holiday to Noosa in the gap between the second and the upcoming Tests.
Prior to this match, he said his players had held "raw" conversations and he had asked them to "show a bit of dog" in their effort to stay alive in the Ashes battle.
Nevertheless, the Kent batsman stated the messaging from Stokes and coach Brendon McCullum had stayed consistent with their previous three years in charge.
"The atmosphere has been extremely upbeat, unchanged," said Crawley. "It's just trying to be optimistic, playing our brand, with great liberty. It felt like we could do an extraordinary feat entering this game."
The Hosts Close of Historic Ashes Triumph
The opener's wicket late on Saturday was part of a crucial triple-strike by Australia off-spinner Lyon.
Lyon's three wickets in a short spell – including the wickets of Harry Brook and Ben Stokes – meant England six down for 207 in pursuit of a notional total of 435 runs.
This means, Australia need just four more wickets on Sunday's last day to move to an unassailable three-nil lead with three Tests.
A loss will extend the English team's winless run in this country to 18 Tests and condemn them to a fourth successive overseas Ashes defeat.
The current battle will be completed in only eleven days of cricket – after England fell the initial matches in two and four days each.
Not since 1921, when the Australians completed a series win in England in eight days, has the outcome of the urn been decided so quickly. The hosts have also won in eleven days on two other instances in the 21st century.
"It's disheartening," said the batsman. "We came here to win the Ashes and now we are facing elimination at this point."
"There will still be plenty to play for and we'll definitely view it with that mindset," he continued.
"It's been difficult. They're a very, very good side. It was always going to be hard touring here against them. They entered as the front-runners coming in to it they've proven why."
Pope's Place Under Scrutiny
While Crawley's performance in Adelaide likely secures questions about his short-term place in the England team, Ollie Pope looks under threat for his position in the Melbourne Test starting December 26th.
The Surrey batsman fell for 17 in the team's second knock on Saturday, adding to his poor record versus the old enemy.
Across sixteen Ashes knocks, the Surrey man has never made a fifty and averages just 17.62.
Only one other English batsman in over a century – Dennis Amiss – has featured an equal number of innings in the top order in Ashes Tests and returned a lower average.
But, Crawley said any suggestion Pope is under the microscope originates with "you guys" – referring to the press – "not inside the camp."
"We all know of his considerable talent," said he. "He has had a productive year to be frank."
"He has played several excellent innings. This is noise externally. There is no discussion of that nature on Ollie amongst the players," he finished.
