The English opening batter Zak Crawley has indicated he had no knowledge of statements made by captain Ben Stokes regarding the team environment not being "weak men".
The all-rounder delivered those words in several conversations in the wake of England's defeat in the second match of the Ashes series against Australia previously.
Ahead of the third Test, where the visitors now face defeat at the earliest opportunity, Stokes stated he had allowed his message to "circulate freely" within the playing group.
"I've done all the talking over the past two days that I required," remarked Stokes.
But, after Crawley made a knock of 85 on the fourth day in Adelaide, he stated: "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," he added.
Raw Conversations and Consistent Messaging
The captain issued his "fragile individuals" comment after his side were beaten in Brisbane to fall 2-0 down.
The England squad subsequently went on a holiday to a Queensland resort in the gap between the second and the upcoming matches.
Prior to the Adelaide contest, Stokes said his players had held "honest" talks and he had urged them to "display some fight" in their battle to stay in contention in the Ashes battle.
Yet, the Kent batsman asserted the guidance from Stokes and head coach McCullum had remained consistent with their previous tenure in leadership.
"It's been extremely upbeat, the same as always," said the opener. "It's just trying to be optimistic, play our way, with lots of freedom. We believed we were capable of an extraordinary feat going into this game."
Australia Close of Historic Ashes Triumph
The opener's wicket on day four came during a crucial triple-strike by Australian spinner Lyon.
The spinner's three wickets in 20 deliveries – including the wickets of Harry Brook and Stokes himself – meant England 207-6 in pursuit of a notional target of 435 runs.
This means, the home team need just four more wickets on the final day to secure an insurmountable 3-0 advantage with three Tests.
Defeat will extend England's winless run in this country to 18 consecutive matches and condemn them to a fourth straight away Ashes series loss.
The current battle will be completed in only 11 days of play – after England losing the first two Tests in rapid time each.
Not since 1921, when the Australians completed victory in England in eight days, has the destination of the Ashes urn been determined so quickly. The hosts have also triumphed in eleven days on two other instances in the 21st century.
"This is disheartening," admitted the batsman. "We came here to regain the Ashes and we're facing elimination now."
"There will still be significant pride at stake and we will definitely view it like that," he continued.
"It's been difficult. Australia is a very, very good side. It was always going to be hard touring here to face them. They entered as the front-runners and they've proven why."
Ollie Pope's Place Under Scrutiny
Although Crawley's performance in Adelaide probably answers doubts about his short-term future in the England team, Pope appears under immense pressure for his position in the fourth Test on Boxing Day.
Pope fell for 17 in England's second innings on Saturday, extending his poor record versus the old enemy.
In sixteen Ashes knocks, the Surrey man has failed to score a half-century and averages 17.62.
A solitary other England player since 1900 – Dennis Amiss – has featured as many times in the top order in Ashes Tests and recorded a poorer average.
But, Crawley insisted any notion Pope is under the microscope comes from "the media" – meaning the press – "not inside the camp."
"The squad is fully aware how good of a player he is," added Crawley. "He has had a good year if I'm honest."
"He has produced several excellent innings. This is talk from the outside. There is no chat like that on Ollie in the camp," he concluded.
