England opening batter Zak Crawley suggested he was not familiar with comments made by captain Ben Stokes regarding the dressing room as no place for "weak men".
The all-rounder made this message in several conversations in the wake of England's defeat in the second Ashes series versus the Australians previously.
In the lead-up to the Adelaide Test, where England now face defeat at the earliest opportunity, the captain stated he had allowed his sentiment to "drift around" within the playing group.
"I have completed all the talking in recent days that I needed to have done," said Stokes.
But, following Crawley made 85 on the fourth day in the third Test, he commented: "I didn't see that."
"I wasn't actively searching for it. Our approach is to take everything that is said in the press with a pinch of salt," he added.
Raw Conversations and Steady Philosophy
Stokes issued his "fragile individuals" observation subsequent to England were beaten in Brisbane to fall 2-0 down.
The team afterwards took a holiday to a Queensland resort between the second and third matches.
Before this match, Stokes said his team had held "raw" conversations and he had asked them to "display some fight" in their effort to stay in contention in the series.
Nevertheless, the Kent batsman stated the guidance from the captain and coach Brendon McCullum had stayed in line with their previous tenure in leadership.
"The atmosphere has been extremely upbeat, unchanged," said Crawley. "The focus is on maintaining positivity, playing our brand, with lots of freedom. We believed we were capable of an extraordinary feat going into this game."
The Hosts On the Verge of Rapid Series Victory
The opener's wicket late on Saturday came during a decisive triple-strike by Australian spinner Lyon.
Lyon's triple strike in 20 deliveries – including the wickets of Brook and Ben Stokes – meant England 207-6 in pursuit of a daunting total of 435.
Consequently, the home team need just four more wickets on the final day to move to an unassailable three-nil advantage with three Tests.
Defeat would prolong the English team's drought in Australia to 18 consecutive matches and condemn them to a fourth straight away Ashes series loss.
This series is set to be decided in only 11 days of play – after England fell the initial matches in two and four days respectively.
The last time 1921, when the Australians sealed a series win in the UK in eight days, has the destination of the Ashes urn been determined so quickly. The hosts have also won in 11 days on two other occasions in the modern era.
"It's disheartening," admitted Crawley. "We came here to regain the Ashes and we're facing elimination at this point."
"There remains plenty to play for and we'll certainly approach it like that," he continued.
"It's been difficult. They're a formidable team. It was always going to be tough coming here to face them. They entered as the favourites and have demonstrated their quality."
Pope's Position In Question
While the opener's innings in Adelaide probably answers doubts about his short-term future in the England team, Ollie Pope looks under immense pressure for his position in the fourth Test on Boxing Day.
Pope fell for 17 runs in England's second knock on day four, adding to his poor record against the old enemy.
In 16 Ashes innings, the Surrey man has failed to score a half-century and boasts an average of just 17.62.
Only one other English batsman in over a century – Dennis Amiss – has played as many times in the top six in the Ashes and returned a lower average.
But, Crawley insisted any notion Pope is being scrutinised originates with "you guys" – referring to the journalists – "and not within the team."
"The squad is fully aware how good of a player he is," added he. "Ollie has enjoyed a good year if I'm honest."
"He has produced some really good knocks. This is noise from the outside. There is no discussion like that on Ollie in the camp," Crawley concluded.
