England opening batter Zak Crawley suggested he had no knowledge of statements from skipper Ben Stokes about the team environment not being "weak men".
Stokes delivered those words in several interviews in the wake of England's loss in the second Ashes series against Australia earlier this month.
Ahead of the Adelaide Test, where England are staring at a series loss at the earliest opportunity, Stokes noted he had allowed his message to "circulate freely" within the playing group.
"I've done the necessary discussions in recent days that I needed to have done," remarked the England leader.
But, after the opener made 85 on the penultimate day in Adelaide, he stated: "I missed those remarks."
"I wasn't actively searching for it. Our approach is to take anything stated in the media with a pinch of salt," Crawley continued.
Raw Conversations and Consistent Messaging
Stokes made the "weak men" observation subsequent to his side suffered a loss in the second Test to fall 2-0 down.
The England squad subsequently took a break to a Queensland resort in the gap between the second and third matches.
Prior to this match, Stokes revealed his players had held "raw" talks and he had urged them to "show a bit of dog" in their effort to remain in contention in the Ashes battle.
Nevertheless, Crawley stated the messaging from the captain and coach Brendon McCullum had stayed in line with their prior tenure in charge.
"The atmosphere has been very positive, the same as always," noted Crawley. "The focus is on maintaining positivity, playing our brand, with lots of freedom. It felt like we were capable of something special entering this game."
Australia Close of Rapid Series Victory
The opener's wicket late on Saturday was part of a crucial three-wicket burst by Australian off-spinner Lyon.
Lyon's three wickets in a short spell – he also bowled Brook and Ben Stokes – meant the chasing side 207-6 in pursuit of a notional target of 435 runs.
Consequently, the home team require four wickets on Sunday's final day to move to an unassailable three-nil lead with three matches played.
A loss will extend England's winless run in Australia to 18 Tests and condemn them to a fourth straight away Ashes series defeat.
The current battle will be completed in only 11 days of cricket – after England losing the first two Tests in two and four days each.
Not since 1921, when the Australians completed victory in the UK in eight days, has the outcome of the urn been decided more swiftly. Australia have also triumphed in 11 days on two other occasions in the modern era.
"It's disappointing," said the batsman. "We came here to regain the Ashes and now we are facing elimination now."
"There remains significant pride at stake and we will definitely view it with that mindset," he continued.
"It's been tough. They're a formidable side. It was inevitably tough coming here to face them. They were the front-runners coming in to it have demonstrated their quality."
Pope's Position In Question
Although Crawley's innings in the third Test likely secures doubts about his immediate place in the England team, Ollie Pope appears under threat for his spot in the fourth Test on Boxing Day.
The Surrey batsman was out for 17 runs in England's second innings on Saturday, extending his modest returns against the old enemy.
Across sixteen Ashes knocks, Pope has never made a fifty and averages just 17.62.
Only one other England player since 1900 – Dennis Amiss – has played as many times in the top six in the Ashes and recorded a lower average.
But, the opener said any notion Pope is being scrutinised comes from "you guys" – meaning the journalists – "and not within the team."
"The squad is fully aware of his considerable talent," added Crawley. "He has had a good year to be frank."
"He has played several excellent innings. This is talk externally. There is no discussion like that regarding Pope in the camp," he concluded.
