England opener Zak Crawley suggested he was not familiar with comments from captain Ben Stokes regarding the team environment as no place for "weak men".
The all-rounder delivered those words in several interviews following his team's loss in the second Ashes against the Australians previously.
Ahead of the third Test, where the visitors are staring at defeat with a match to spare, Stokes noted he had allowed his message to "circulate freely" within the squad.
"I have completed the necessary discussions over the past two days that I required," said Stokes.
But, following Crawley scored a knock of 85 on the fourth day in Adelaide, he commented: "I missed those remarks."
"I didn't see and wasn't really looking out for it. Our approach is to take anything stated in the media with a pinch of salt," he added.
Frank Discussions and Consistent Messaging
The captain made the "weak men" observation after his side were beaten in the second Test to fall 2-0 down.
The England squad afterwards went on a break to a Queensland resort in the gap between the second and the upcoming Tests.
Before this match, he said 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, the Kent batsman stated the guidance from Stokes and head coach Brendon McCullum had stayed in line with their previous three years in charge.
"It's been very positive, the same as always," noted Crawley. "The focus is just trying to be optimistic, play our way, with lots of freedom. We believed we were capable of something special entering this Test."
The Hosts On the Verge of Rapid Ashes Triumph
Crawley's wicket late on Saturday came during a crucial triple-strike by Australia spinner Lyon.
Lyon's triple strike in a short spell – including the wickets of Brook and Stokes himself – meant England 207-6 chasing a notional target of 435 runs.
Consequently, the home team require four wickets on Sunday's final day to move to an unassailable 3-0 advantage with three matches played.
A loss would prolong England's winless run in this country to 18 consecutive matches and ensure a fourth successive overseas Ashes defeat.
The current battle will be completed in just eleven days of play – with England fell the first two Tests in two and four days respectively.
Not since 1921, when Australia sealed victory in the UK in eight days, has the outcome of the Ashes urn been decided so quickly. Australia have also triumphed in 11 days on two other instances in the 21st century.
"It's disheartening," said the batsman. "Our goal was to regain the Ashes and we're facing elimination at this point."
"There will still be significant pride at stake and we'll definitely view it with that mindset," Crawley added.
"It's been difficult. Australia is a very, very good team. It was always going to be hard coming here against them. They entered as the front-runners coming in to it they've proven why."
Ollie Pope's Place Under Scrutiny
While the opener's performance in the third Test probably answers doubts about his short-term future in the side, Ollie Pope appears under immense pressure for his position in the fourth Test on Boxing Day.
The Surrey batsman fell for 17 runs in the team's second knock on day four, extending his modest returns against the old enemy.
In 16 Ashes innings, the Surrey man has never made a half-century and boasts an average of just 17.62.
A solitary other England player in over a century – Dennis Amiss – has featured an equal number of innings in the top six in the Ashes and returned a lower average.
However, Crawley said any suggestion Pope 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 Crawley. "He has had a productive year to be frank."
"He has produced some really good knocks. It is talk externally. There's no chat like that regarding Pope amongst the players," Crawley concluded.
