The English opener Zak Crawley has indicated he had no knowledge of statements made by captain Ben Stokes about the team environment as no place for "weak men".
The all-rounder delivered this message in multiple interviews following England's defeat in the second match of the Ashes series versus Australia earlier this month.
Ahead of the third Test, where the visitors now face a series loss at the earliest opportunity, Stokes noted he had let his message to "drift around" among the squad.
"I've done all the talking in recent days that I required," said Stokes.
But, after the opener made 85 on the fourth day in Adelaide, he commented: "I missed those remarks."
"I wasn't actively searching for it. We take everything that is said in the press with some skepticism," Crawley continued.
Raw Conversations and Steady Philosophy
The captain made the "weak men" observation after his side suffered a loss in the second Test to fall 2-0 down.
The England squad afterwards took a holiday to Noosa in the gap between the second and the upcoming Tests.
Before the Adelaide contest, Stokes revealed his players had held "honest" talks and he had asked them to "show a bit of dog" in their effort to remain in contention in the Ashes battle.
Nevertheless, the Kent batsman stated the messaging from Stokes and head coach McCullum had stayed consistent with their previous three years in leadership.
"It's been extremely upbeat, unchanged," said Crawley. "The focus is just trying to be optimistic, playing our brand, with lots of freedom. It felt like we could do something special going into this Test."
The Hosts On the Verge of Historic Series Victory
Crawley's wicket late on Saturday was part of a crucial triple-strike by Australian spinner Lyon.
The spinner's three wickets in a short spell – he also bowled Harry Brook and Ben Stokes – left the chasing side six down for 207 chasing a notional total of 435 runs.
Consequently, the home team need just four more wickets on Sunday's final day to move to an unassailable 3-0 advantage after three matches played.
A loss would prolong the English team's winless run in this country to 18 consecutive matches and condemn them to a fourth straight overseas Ashes series loss.
This series is set to be decided in just 11 days of play – after England fell the first two Tests in rapid time respectively.
Not since 1921, when Australia completed victory in the UK in eight days, has the destination of the urn been determined so quickly. Australia have also won in 11 days on two other occasions in the 21st century.
"It's disappointing," admitted the batsman. "We came here to win the Ashes and now we are facing elimination at this point."
"There remains significant pride at stake and we'll definitely view it like that," Crawley added.
"The challenge has been difficult. They're a very, very good side. It was always going to be hard coming here against them. They were the favourites coming in to it they've proven why."
Pope's Place Under Scrutiny
While Crawley's innings in Adelaide likely secures doubts about his immediate future in the side, Pope appears under immense pressure for his position in the Melbourne Test on Boxing Day.
The Surrey batsman fell for 17 runs in the team's second innings on Saturday, adding to his poor record versus the old enemy.
Across sixteen Ashes knocks, Pope has failed to score a fifty and averages 17.62.
Only one other English batsman since 1900 – Dennis Amiss – has featured an equal number of innings in the top six in Ashes Tests and recorded a lower average.
But, the opener insisted any notion Pope is being scrutinised originates with "the media" – meaning the press – "not inside the camp."
"The squad is fully aware how good of a player he is," added Crawley. "He has had a productive year if I'm honest."
"He has produced several excellent innings. This is noise from the outside. There is no chat like that on Ollie amongst the players," he concluded.
