The English opening batter Zak Crawley suggested he was not familiar with comments from captain Ben Stokes about the dressing room as no place for "those lacking fortitude".
The all-rounder made those words in several conversations in the wake of England's defeat in the second match of the Ashes versus the Australians earlier this month.
Ahead of the third Test, where England now face a series loss with a match to spare, Stokes stated he had let his sentiment to "circulate freely" within the squad.
"I've done all the talking over the past two days that I needed to have done," remarked the England leader.
But, after Crawley made a knock of 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 press with some skepticism," he added.
Frank Discussions and Consistent Messaging
The captain issued his "weak men" comment after his side were beaten in the second Test to fall two matches behind.
The England squad afterwards took a break to a Queensland resort between the second and the upcoming matches.
Prior to this match, he revealed his players had held "raw" talks and he had urged them to "show a bit of dog" in their effort to remain alive in the series.
Yet, Crawley stated the guidance from the captain and head coach McCullum had stayed consistent with their previous three years in leadership.
"It's been extremely upbeat, unchanged," said the opener. "The focus is on maintaining positivity, playing our brand, with great liberty. We believed we were capable of an extraordinary feat going into this game."
The Hosts On the Verge of Rapid Series Victory
Crawley's dismissal on day four was part of a decisive triple-strike by Australia spinner Nathan Lyon.
The spinner's three wickets in 20 deliveries – including the wickets of Harry Brook and Stokes himself – left England six down for 207 chasing a daunting total of 435 runs.
This means, Australia need four wickets on the last day to secure an unassailable three-nil lead with three matches played.
Defeat would prolong the English team's winless run in this country to 18 Tests and condemn them to a fourth straight overseas Ashes series loss.
This series is set to be decided in just eleven days of play – after England losing the initial matches in rapid time respectively.
The last time 1921, when Australia sealed a series win in the UK in eight days, has the destination of the Ashes urn been decided so quickly. The hosts have also triumphed in eleven days on two other occasions in the 21st century.
"This is disheartening," said Crawley. "We came here to win the Ashes and we're facing elimination at this point."
"There will still be plenty to play for and we'll definitely view it with that mindset," he continued.
"The challenge has been tough. Australia is a very, very good team. It was inevitably hard touring here to face them. They entered as the favourites coming in to it they've proven why."
Ollie Pope's Position In Question
While Crawley's innings in the third Test probably answers questions about his short-term place in the side, Ollie Pope looks under immense pressure for his position in the fourth Test starting December 26th.
The Surrey batsman was out for 17 runs in the team's second knock on Saturday, extending his modest returns versus the old enemy.
Across sixteen Ashes knocks, the Surrey man has failed to score a fifty and boasts an average of just 17.62.
Only one other England player in over a century – Dennis Amiss – has featured as many times in the top six in Ashes Tests and recorded a lower average.
But, Crawley insisted any suggestion his teammate is being scrutinised comes from "you guys" – referring to the press – "and not within the team."
"We all know of his considerable talent," added he. "He has had a productive year if I'm honest."
"He has produced several excellent innings. This is noise from the outside. There is no chat of that nature on Ollie in the camp," Crawley finished.
