England opening batter Zak Crawley suggested he was not familiar with statements made by captain Ben Stokes about the team environment as no place for "weak men".
The all-rounder delivered this message in several interviews in the wake of his team's defeat in the second Ashes series against Australia earlier this month.
Ahead of the Adelaide Test, where the visitors now face defeat with a match to spare, Stokes stated he had let his sentiment to "drift around" within the squad.
"I've done the necessary discussions in recent days that I required," said the England leader.
However, following the opener made a knock of 85 on the fourth day in the third Test, he commented: "I didn't see that."
"I didn't see and wasn't really looking out for it. Our approach is to take anything stated in the press with a pinch of salt," Crawley continued.
Raw Conversations and Steady Philosophy
The captain issued his "weak men" comment after his side were beaten in the second Test to go two matches behind.
The England squad afterwards went on a break to a Queensland resort in the gap between the second and the upcoming matches.
Before this match, he said his players had held "honest" talks and he had asked them to "display some fight" in their effort to remain alive in the series.
Yet, the Kent batsman asserted the messaging from the captain and head coach Brendon McCullum had remained in line with their previous three years in charge.
"It's been very positive, unchanged," noted the opener. "It's just trying to be optimistic, playing our brand, with lots of freedom. It felt like we could do something special going into this game."
Australia Close of Historic Series Victory
Crawley's dismissal late on Saturday was part of a decisive three-wicket burst by Australian off-spinner Nathan Lyon.
Lyon's three wickets in 20 deliveries – he also bowled Brook and Ben Stokes – meant the chasing side six down for 207 in pursuit of a notional target of 435.
Consequently, Australia need just four more wickets on Sunday's final day to move to an unassailable three-nil advantage with three matches played.
A loss will extend the English team's drought in Australia to 18 consecutive matches and condemn them to a fourth straight away Ashes series loss.
The current battle is set to be decided in only eleven days of play – with England fell the first two Tests in rapid time respectively.
The last time 1921, when the Australians completed a series win in England in eight days, has the destination of the Ashes urn been determined more swiftly. Australia have also won in 11 days on two other occasions in the modern era.
"This is disheartening," said the batsman. "We came here to win the Ashes and we're staring down the barrel now."
"There will still be significant pride at stake and we will definitely view it with that mindset," Crawley added.
"It's been difficult. Australia is a formidable team. It was inevitably tough touring here to face them. They entered as the front-runners and they've proven why."
Pope's Place In Question
While the opener's performance in the third Test likely secures doubts about his immediate place in the side, Pope looks under threat for his position in the Melbourne Test on Boxing Day.
Pope fell for 17 runs in England's second knock on day four, adding to his poor record against Australia.
In sixteen Ashes knocks, Pope has never made a half-century and averages 17.62.
A solitary other England player in over a century – Amiss – has featured an equal number of innings in the top order in Ashes Tests and returned a poorer average.
But, Crawley said any suggestion his teammate is being scrutinised originates with "the media" – referring to the journalists – "and not within the team."
"The squad is fully aware of his considerable talent," said he. "Ollie has enjoyed a productive year if I'm honest."
"He has produced some really good knocks. It is noise from the outside. There is no discussion like that on Ollie amongst the players," Crawley concluded.
