England opening batter Zak Crawley suggested he had no knowledge of comments from captain Ben Stokes about the dressing room not being "those lacking fortitude".
Stokes delivered those words in multiple conversations in the wake of his team's loss in the second match of the Ashes versus Australia previously.
In the lead-up to the Adelaide Test, where England are staring at defeat at the earliest opportunity, the captain noted he had allowed his message to "circulate freely" within the playing group.
"I have completed the necessary discussions over the past two days that I needed to have done," said Stokes.
But, following Crawley scored a knock of 85 on the penultimate day in Adelaide, he commented: "I missed those remarks."
"I wasn't actively searching for it. Our approach is to take everything that is said in the press with a pinch of salt," Crawley continued.
Raw Conversations and Consistent Messaging
Stokes made the "fragile individuals" comment subsequent to England were beaten in the second Test to fall 2-0 down.
The England squad subsequently took a holiday to a Queensland resort between the second and third matches.
Prior to this match, Stokes revealed his players had held "raw" talks and he had asked them to "show a bit of dog" in their battle to stay in contention in the Ashes battle.
Nevertheless, the Kent batsman stated the guidance from Stokes and head coach McCullum had stayed in line with their prior three years in charge.
"The atmosphere has been extremely upbeat, 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 going into this game."
The Hosts Close of Rapid Series Victory
Crawley's wicket on day four was part of a decisive three-wicket burst by Australian off-spinner Lyon.
The spinner's triple strike in 20 deliveries – he also bowled Brook and Stokes himself – meant England six down for 207 in pursuit of a daunting target of 435.
Consequently, the home team need just four more wickets on the final day to move to an unassailable 3-0 lead after three matches played.
Defeat would prolong the English team's winless run in Australia to 18 consecutive matches and ensure a fourth straight away Ashes defeat.
The current battle will be completed in only eleven days of play – with England fell the initial matches in rapid time each.
Not since 1921, when the Australians completed a series win in the UK in eight days, has the destination of the urn been decided so quickly. The hosts have also won in 11 days on two other occasions in the modern era.
"This is disheartening," admitted the batsman. "Our goal was to win the Ashes and now we are facing elimination at this point."
"There remains significant pride at stake and we will certainly approach it with that mindset," Crawley added.
"The challenge has been difficult. Australia is a very, very good team. It was always going to be hard touring here to face them. They were the favourites and they've proven why."
Pope's Place Under Scrutiny
Although Crawley's innings in the third Test probably answers doubts about his immediate place in the side, Ollie Pope looks under threat for his spot in the Melbourne Test on Boxing Day.
Pope fell for 17 runs in England's second knock on Saturday, adding to his modest returns against Australia.
Across 16 Ashes innings, Pope has failed to score a half-century and averages just 17.62.
A solitary other English batsman 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.
But, the opener said any notion his teammate is under the microscope originates with "you guys" – 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. It is talk externally. There's no chat like that on Ollie in the camp," he finished.
