The English opener Zak Crawley suggested he was not familiar with comments made by skipper Ben Stokes about the team environment as no place for "those lacking fortitude".
The all-rounder delivered those words in multiple conversations following his team's defeat in the second match of the Ashes series versus Australia earlier this month.
In the lead-up to the third Test, where the visitors are staring at defeat at the earliest opportunity, Stokes stated he had let his sentiment to "drift around" among the squad.
"I have completed the necessary discussions over the past two days that I required," said Stokes.
But, after the opener scored a knock of 85 on the penultimate day in the third Test, he commented: "I didn't see that."
"I wasn't actively searching for it. Our approach is to take anything stated in the media with a pinch of salt," he added.
Raw Conversations and Steady Philosophy
The captain made the "weak men" comment subsequent to England suffered a loss in the second Test to go two matches behind.
The England squad afterwards took a holiday to Noosa between the second and the upcoming Tests.
Before this match, Stokes said his players had held "honest" talks and he had asked them to "display some fight" in their effort to remain in contention in the Ashes battle.
Yet, the Kent batsman asserted the guidance from the captain and coach McCullum had remained in line with their previous tenure in charge.
"The atmosphere has been extremely upbeat, unchanged," said the opener. "It's just trying to be optimistic, playing our brand, with lots of freedom. We believed we were capable of an extraordinary feat going into this Test."
The Hosts Close of Historic Ashes Triumph
Crawley's wicket on day four came during a decisive triple-strike by Australian off-spinner Lyon.
The spinner's triple strike in 20 deliveries – he also bowled Harry Brook and Stokes himself – meant England six down for 207 chasing a daunting total of 435.
This means, the home team need just four more wickets on Sunday's final day to move to an unassailable three-nil lead after three Tests.
Defeat will extend England's winless run in Australia to 18 Tests and condemn them to a fourth straight overseas Ashes defeat.
This series is set to be decided in just 11 days of play – after England losing the first two Tests in rapid time each.
The last time 1921, when Australia sealed a series win in England in eight days, has the outcome of the urn been determined so quickly. Australia have also won in 11 days on two other instances in the 21st century.
"It's disheartening," said the batsman. "We came here to regain the Ashes and we're facing elimination now."
"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 team. It was inevitably hard coming here against them. They were the front-runners and have demonstrated their quality."
Pope's Position Under Scrutiny
While the opener's performance in the third Test likely secures questions about his immediate future in the side, Ollie Pope looks under threat for his spot in the Melbourne Test starting December 26th.
Pope fell for 17 runs in England's second knock on day four, adding to his modest returns versus the old enemy.
Across 16 Ashes innings, Pope has failed to score a half-century and boasts an average of just 17.62.
A solitary other English batsman since 1900 – Dennis Amiss – has played an equal number of innings in the top order in Ashes Tests and returned a lower average.
But, Crawley said any notion Pope is being scrutinised comes from "you guys" – referring to the journalists – "and not within the team."
"The squad is fully aware of his considerable talent," said he. "Ollie has enjoyed a good year if I'm honest."
"He has played some really good knocks. This is noise externally. There's no chat like that regarding Pope in the camp," Crawley finished.
