The English opener Zak Crawley has indicated he was not familiar with comments made by captain Ben Stokes regarding the dressing room as no place for "those lacking fortitude".
Stokes made those words in several interviews in the wake of his team's defeat in the second Ashes against the Australians earlier this month.
In the lead-up to the third Test, where the visitors are staring at a series loss at the earliest opportunity, the captain stated he had allowed his sentiment to "drift around" among the squad.
"I have completed all the talking over the past two days that I needed to have done," said Stokes.
But, following the opener made a knock of 85 on the fourth day in Adelaide, he stated: "I missed those remarks."
"I wasn't actively searching for it. We take anything stated in the press with some skepticism," Crawley continued.
Frank Discussions and Steady Philosophy
The captain made the "weak men" comment subsequent to England suffered a loss in the second Test to fall 2-0 down.
The team afterwards 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 team had held "honest" talks and he had asked them to "show a bit of dog" in their battle to stay in contention in the series.
Nevertheless, the Kent batsman asserted the guidance from Stokes and coach Brendon McCullum had stayed in line with their previous tenure in leadership.
"The atmosphere has been extremely upbeat, the same as always," noted Crawley. "The focus is on maintaining positivity, play our way, with great liberty. It felt like we could do something special entering this Test."
The Hosts On the Verge of Rapid Series Victory
Crawley's dismissal on day four was part of a decisive triple-strike by Australia spinner Lyon.
The spinner's three wickets in 20 deliveries – including the wickets of Harry Brook and Stokes himself – meant the chasing side six down for 207 chasing a daunting total of 435.
This means, the home team need four wickets on Sunday's final day to secure an unassailable 3-0 advantage after three matches played.
Defeat would prolong England's winless run in Australia to 18 Tests and condemn them to a fourth straight overseas Ashes loss.
The current battle is set to be decided in only 11 days of play – with England losing the first two Tests in two and four days each.
Not since 1921, when the Australians completed victory in England in eight days, has the destination of the urn been determined so quickly. The hosts have also won in eleven days on two other instances in the modern era.
"This is disappointing," said the batsman. "Our goal was to win the Ashes and we're facing elimination now."
"There will still be plenty to play for and we'll certainly approach it with that mindset," Crawley added.
"It's been tough. They're a very, very good team. It was always going to be tough coming here against them. They were the front-runners and have demonstrated their quality."
Ollie Pope's Place Under Scrutiny
Although the opener's innings in the third Test likely secures questions about his short-term future in the side, Ollie Pope appears under threat for his spot in the fourth Test starting December 26th.
Pope was out for 17 in the team's second knock on Saturday, extending his modest returns versus the old enemy.
Across sixteen Ashes knocks, Pope has never made a half-century and averages 17.62.
Only one other English batsman since 1900 – Amiss – has played as many times in the top order in the Ashes and returned a lower average.
But, the opener insisted any notion 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," added Crawley. "He has had a good year to be frank."
"He has produced some really good knocks. This is noise externally. There is no chat like that on Ollie amongst the players," Crawley concluded.
