The English opener Zak Crawley has indicated he had no knowledge of statements made by captain Ben Stokes about the dressing room as no place for "those lacking fortitude".
The all-rounder delivered those words in several conversations following England's loss in the second Ashes against Australia previously.
In the lead-up to the Adelaide Test, where England are staring at defeat with a match to spare, the captain noted he had let his sentiment to "circulate freely" among the squad.
"I've done all the talking in recent days that I required," said Stokes.
But, after Crawley made 85 on the penultimate day in Adelaide, he commented: "I didn't see that."
"I didn't see and wasn't really looking out for it. Our approach is to take everything that is said in the media with some skepticism," Crawley continued.
Frank Discussions and Steady Philosophy
The captain made the "fragile individuals" comment subsequent to his side were beaten in the second Test to go 2-0 down.
The team subsequently went on a holiday to Noosa between the second and third Tests.
Before the Adelaide contest, Stokes said his team had held "honest" talks and he had asked them to "show a bit of dog" in their effort to stay alive in the series.
Nevertheless, the Kent batsman stated the guidance from Stokes and coach Brendon McCullum had remained consistent with their previous three years in leadership.
"The atmosphere has been extremely upbeat, unchanged," noted the opener. "The focus is on maintaining positivity, play our way, with lots of freedom. We believed we could do an extraordinary feat entering this game."
The Hosts Close of Historic Series Victory
Crawley's wicket on day four came during a crucial three-wicket burst by Australian spinner Nathan Lyon.
The spinner's three wickets in 20 deliveries – including the wickets of Harry Brook and Ben Stokes – meant England six down for 207 in pursuit of a notional total of 435 runs.
Consequently, Australia need four wickets on the final day to move to an insurmountable 3-0 advantage with three matches played.
Defeat would prolong England's winless run in Australia to 18 consecutive matches and ensure a fourth straight overseas Ashes series defeat.
The current battle is set to be decided in just eleven days of cricket – after England fell the initial matches in rapid time respectively.
The last time 1921, when Australia completed a series win in the UK in eight days, has the outcome of the urn been decided more swiftly. The hosts have also triumphed in 11 days on two other occasions in the 21st century.
"This is disheartening," admitted Crawley. "Our goal was to regain the Ashes and now we are facing elimination at this point."
"There remains significant pride at stake and we will definitely view it like that," he continued.
"The challenge has been difficult. They're a formidable team. It was inevitably tough touring here against them. They were the front-runners coming in to it have demonstrated their quality."
Ollie Pope's Place In Question
While the opener's innings in Adelaide probably answers questions about his immediate place in the side, Pope appears under immense pressure for his position in the fourth Test on Boxing Day.
Pope was out for 17 in England's second knock on Saturday, extending his modest returns versus the old enemy.
In 16 Ashes innings, the Surrey man has failed to score a fifty and averages just 17.62.
Only one other English batsman since 1900 – Dennis Amiss – has featured an equal number of innings in the top six in the Ashes and returned a poorer average.
But, Crawley said any notion his teammate is under the microscope comes from "the media" – referring to the journalists – "not inside the camp."
"The squad is fully aware how good of a player he is," said Crawley. "He has had a productive year if I'm honest."
"He has played several excellent innings. This is noise from the outside. There's no discussion like that regarding Pope amongst the players," Crawley concluded.
