The English opening batter Zak Crawley suggested he was not familiar with statements made by skipper Ben Stokes about the team environment as no place for "weak men".
The all-rounder made this message in multiple conversations following his team's loss in the second Ashes series against Australia previously.
In the lead-up to the third Test, where the visitors are staring at defeat with a match to spare, the captain stated he had allowed his message to "circulate freely" among the playing group.
"I have completed the necessary discussions over the past two days that I needed to have done," remarked Stokes.
But, following the opener scored 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 media with a pinch of salt," he added.
Frank Discussions and Steady Philosophy
Stokes made the "weak men" observation subsequent to England suffered a loss in the second Test to go two matches behind.
The England squad subsequently took a holiday to a Queensland resort between the second and third matches.
Before the Adelaide contest, Stokes said his players had held "raw" conversations and he had asked them to "show a bit of dog" in their effort to stay alive in the series.
Yet, Crawley asserted the messaging from the captain and head coach McCullum had stayed in line with their prior tenure in leadership.
"It's been very positive, unchanged," noted the opener. "It's on maintaining positivity, playing our brand, with lots of freedom. It felt like we were capable of something special going into this Test."
The Hosts On the Verge of Historic Ashes Triumph
The opener's dismissal on day four came during a decisive three-wicket burst by Australia off-spinner Lyon.
The spinner's triple strike in a short spell – he also bowled Brook and Ben Stokes – meant the chasing side 207-6 chasing a daunting total of 435 runs.
This means, Australia require just four more wickets on Sunday's last day to secure an insurmountable three-nil advantage after three matches played.
Defeat will extend England's drought in Australia to 18 Tests and condemn them to a fourth successive overseas Ashes series loss.
This series is set to be decided in just eleven days of play – with England fell the first two Tests in two and four days each.
The last time 1921, when Australia completed a series win in England 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.
"It's disheartening," admitted Crawley. "Our goal was to regain the Ashes and we're facing elimination at this point."
"There remains significant pride at stake and we'll definitely view it like that," Crawley added.
"It's been tough. They're a very, very good side. It was always going to be hard touring here to face them. They were the front-runners and they've proven why."
Pope's Position In Question
Although Crawley's innings in the third Test probably answers questions about his immediate place in the side, Pope looks under immense pressure for his position in the Melbourne Test starting December 26th.
The Surrey batsman was out for 17 runs in the team's second innings on day four, extending his modest returns against Australia.
In 16 Ashes innings, Pope has never made a fifty and boasts an average of 17.62.
A solitary other English batsman since 1900 – Dennis Amiss – has featured as many times in the top six in the Ashes and recorded a lower average.
However, Crawley insisted any suggestion Pope is being scrutinised comes from "the media" – meaning the press – "not inside the camp."
"The squad is fully aware of his considerable talent," added Crawley. "Ollie has enjoyed a productive year to be frank."
"He has produced some really good knocks. This is talk externally. There's no discussion of that nature regarding Pope in the camp," Crawley concluded.
