England opening batter Zak Crawley suggested he had no knowledge of statements from captain Ben Stokes regarding the team environment as no place for "those lacking fortitude".
The all-rounder made this message in multiple conversations in the wake of his team's loss in the second match of the Ashes against the Australians previously.
In the lead-up to the Adelaide Test, where the visitors now face a series loss with a match to spare, the captain stated he had allowed his sentiment to "drift around" within the playing group.
"I have completed the necessary discussions in recent days that I needed to have done," remarked the England leader.
But, after Crawley made a knock of 85 on the penultimate day in the third Test, 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," Crawley continued.
Frank Discussions and Steady Philosophy
Stokes made the "fragile individuals" observation after his side were beaten in Brisbane to go 2-0 down.
The England squad afterwards went on a break to a Queensland resort between the second and the upcoming Tests.
Before this match, he revealed his team had held "raw" conversations and he had urged them to "show a bit of dog" in their effort to stay alive in the series.
Yet, the Kent batsman asserted the guidance from Stokes and head coach McCullum had remained consistent with their prior tenure in charge.
"The atmosphere has been extremely upbeat, unchanged," noted Crawley. "The focus is just trying to be optimistic, play our way, with lots of freedom. We believed we were capable of something special going into this game."
The Hosts On the Verge of Historic Ashes Triumph
Crawley's wicket late on Saturday came during a crucial triple-strike by Australian off-spinner Lyon.
The spinner's three wickets in a short spell – including the wickets of Brook and Stokes himself – meant England six down for 207 in pursuit of a daunting target of 435.
This means, the home team require just four more wickets on the last day to move to an insurmountable three-nil lead after three matches played.
A loss will extend England's drought in this country to 18 Tests and ensure a fourth straight away Ashes defeat.
This series is set to be decided in only eleven days of play – with England fell the initial matches in rapid time each.
The last time 1921, when Australia completed a series win in the UK in eight days, has the destination of the urn been decided more swiftly. The hosts have also won in 11 days on two other occasions in the modern era.
"This is disappointing," admitted Crawley. "We came here to win the Ashes and we're facing elimination now."
"There will still be significant pride at stake and we will certainly approach it like that," he continued.
"The challenge has been difficult. Australia is a very, very good team. It was always going to be tough coming here to face them. They were the favourites coming in to it they've proven why."
Ollie Pope's Position Under Scrutiny
Although Crawley's performance in Adelaide likely secures doubts about his short-term future in the England team, Ollie Pope appears under threat for his spot in the fourth Test on Boxing Day.
Pope was out for 17 in the team's second innings on day four, extending his modest returns versus the old enemy.
Across 16 Ashes innings, Pope has failed to score a fifty and averages 17.62.
Only one other England player since 1900 – Amiss – has featured an equal number of innings in the top order in Ashes Tests and returned a poorer average.
However, Crawley insisted any notion his teammate is under the microscope comes from "the media" – referring to the press – "not inside the camp."
"We all know how good of a player he is," said he. "Ollie has enjoyed a good year to be frank."
"He has played some really good knocks. It is noise externally. There's no chat like that regarding Pope amongst the players," he concluded.
