England opener Zak Crawley suggested he had no knowledge of statements from skipper Ben Stokes about the team environment not being "weak men".
The all-rounder made those words in multiple conversations following England's loss in the second Ashes versus Australia earlier this month.
Ahead of the third Test, where England now face defeat with a match to spare, the captain stated he had let his sentiment to "circulate freely" among the squad.
"I've done all the talking over the past two days that I needed to have done," remarked Stokes.
But, following the opener made a knock of 85 on the penultimate day in Adelaide, he stated: "I missed those remarks."
"I didn't see and wasn't really looking out for it. Our approach is to take everything that is said in the press with some skepticism," he added.
Frank Discussions and Steady Philosophy
The captain made the "weak men" observation after his side were beaten in the second Test to fall two matches behind.
The England squad subsequently took a holiday to Noosa between the second and third Tests.
Prior to this match, Stokes revealed his players had held "honest" conversations and he had asked them to "display some fight" in their battle to remain alive in the series.
Nevertheless, the Kent batsman stated the guidance from Stokes and head coach McCullum had remained consistent with their previous tenure in leadership.
"The atmosphere has been very positive, the same as always," said the opener. "It's on maintaining positivity, play our way, with great liberty. We believed we were capable of something special going into this game."
Australia On the Verge of Rapid Series Victory
Crawley's dismissal late on Saturday came during a decisive three-wicket burst by Australia spinner Nathan Lyon.
The spinner's triple strike in a short spell – he also bowled Harry Brook and Stokes himself – left England 207-6 in pursuit of a daunting target of 435 runs.
Consequently, Australia require four wickets on the final day to secure an insurmountable three-nil advantage after three matches played.
Defeat would prolong England's winless run in Australia to 18 Tests and condemn them to a fourth straight away Ashes loss.
The current battle is set to be decided in just 11 days of play – with England fell the first two Tests in two and four days respectively.
The last time 1921, when the Australians completed victory in the UK in eight days, has the outcome of the urn been decided so quickly. Australia have also triumphed in 11 days on two other instances in the modern era.
"This is disappointing," said the batsman. "Our goal was to win the Ashes and we're staring down the barrel at this point."
"There will still be plenty to play for and we will definitely view it like that," he continued.
"It's been difficult. Australia is a very, very good side. It was always going to be tough touring here to face them. They entered as the favourites coming in to it have demonstrated their quality."
Ollie Pope's Position Under Scrutiny
While the opener's performance in Adelaide likely secures doubts about his immediate place in the England team, Pope looks under immense pressure for his spot in the fourth Test starting December 26th.
Pope fell for 17 runs in England's second innings on day four, adding to his poor record versus the old enemy.
Across sixteen Ashes knocks, the Surrey man has failed to score a half-century and averages just 17.62.
A solitary other English batsman in over a century – Amiss – has featured as many times in the top order in the Ashes and recorded a poorer average.
But, Crawley said any notion his teammate is under the microscope originates with "the media" – referring to the press – "and not within the team."
"The squad is fully aware of his considerable talent," said he. "He has had a good year if I'm honest."
"He has produced several excellent innings. It is talk externally. There's no chat of that nature regarding Pope amongst the players," Crawley concluded.
