The English opener Zak Crawley has indicated he had no knowledge of comments from captain Ben Stokes about the dressing room as no place for "those lacking fortitude".
The all-rounder delivered this message in multiple conversations in the wake of his team's defeat in the second Ashes against Australia previously.
In the lead-up to the Adelaide Test, where the visitors now face a series loss at the earliest opportunity, Stokes stated he had let his sentiment to "circulate freely" within the squad.
"I have completed the necessary discussions over the past two days that I required," said the England leader.
However, after Crawley scored a knock of 85 on the penultimate day in Adelaide, he stated: "I didn't see that."
"I wasn't actively searching for it. Our approach is to take everything that is said in the media with a pinch of salt," Crawley continued.
Raw Conversations and Steady Philosophy
Stokes made the "weak men" comment after his side were beaten in Brisbane to fall two matches behind.
The team subsequently took a holiday to a Queensland resort between the second and the upcoming Tests.
Prior to the Adelaide contest, Stokes said his team had held "honest" conversations and he had asked them to "show a bit of dog" in their effort to stay in contention in the Ashes battle.
Nevertheless, Crawley asserted the guidance from the captain and coach McCullum had stayed in line with their previous three years in charge.
"The atmosphere has been very positive, the same as always," noted the opener. "It's on maintaining positivity, play our way, with lots of freedom. It felt like we were capable of an extraordinary feat entering this game."
The Hosts Close of Rapid Series Victory
The opener's dismissal on day four came during a decisive triple-strike by Australia spinner Nathan Lyon.
Lyon's triple strike in a short spell – including the wickets of Harry Brook and Ben Stokes – left England 207-6 chasing a daunting total of 435.
This means, Australia need just four more wickets on the final day to move to an insurmountable 3-0 advantage after three Tests.
A loss will extend the English team's winless run in this country to 18 consecutive matches and ensure a fourth straight away Ashes series loss.
The current battle will be completed in only eleven days of play – after England losing the first two Tests in two and four days each.
Not since 1921, when Australia completed a series win in the UK in eight days, has the destination of the urn been determined so quickly. The hosts have also triumphed in 11 days on two other instances in the modern era.
"This is disappointing," admitted the batsman. "Our goal was to regain the Ashes and now we are staring down the barrel at this point."
"There will still be plenty to play for and we'll definitely view it with that mindset," Crawley added.
"The challenge has been difficult. Australia is a formidable side. It was inevitably hard coming here against them. They were the front-runners coming in to it they've proven why."
Pope's Position In Question
While the opener's performance in the third Test probably answers doubts about his short-term place in the England team, Pope appears under threat for his spot in the Melbourne Test starting December 26th.
The Surrey batsman was out for 17 runs in England's second innings on day four, 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 English batsman in over a century – Dennis Amiss – has played an equal number of innings in the top order in the Ashes and returned a poorer average.
But, Crawley said any notion Pope is being scrutinised comes from "the media" – meaning the journalists – "and not within the team."
"We all know of his considerable talent," added Crawley. "Ollie has enjoyed a good year if I'm honest."
"He has produced some really good knocks. It is noise externally. There's no discussion of that nature regarding Pope in the camp," he finished.
