The English opener Zak Crawley suggested he was not familiar with comments from captain Ben Stokes about the dressing room as no place for "weak men".
The all-rounder delivered those words in multiple interviews in the wake of England's loss in the second match of the Ashes series versus Australia earlier this month.
Ahead of the Adelaide Test, where the visitors now face a series loss at the earliest opportunity, the captain stated he had let his message to "drift around" among the playing group.
"I've done the necessary discussions over the past two days that I required," said Stokes.
However, following the opener scored a knock of 85 on the fourth day in the third Test, he stated: "I didn't see that."
"I wasn't actively searching for it. We take anything stated in the media with a pinch of salt," Crawley continued.
Frank Discussions and Steady Philosophy
The captain issued his "weak men" observation after England were beaten in the second Test to go 2-0 down.
The England squad afterwards took a break to a Queensland resort between the second and the upcoming matches.
Before the Adelaide contest, Stokes revealed his players had held "honest" talks and he had asked them to "show a bit of dog" in their effort to remain alive in the Ashes battle.
Nevertheless, the Kent batsman asserted the messaging from Stokes and coach Brendon McCullum had remained in line with their prior three years in charge.
"It's been very positive, the same as always," noted Crawley. "The focus is on maintaining positivity, playing our brand, with great liberty. We believed we could do something special going into this game."
Australia On the Verge of Rapid Series Victory
The opener's wicket late on Saturday came during a crucial triple-strike by Australian spinner Lyon.
The spinner's triple strike in 20 deliveries – he also bowled Harry Brook and Stokes himself – meant the chasing side six down for 207 in pursuit of a daunting total of 435 runs.
Consequently, the home team require four wickets on the last day to secure an insurmountable three-nil lead after three matches played.
Defeat will extend the English team's drought in this country to 18 Tests and condemn them to a fourth successive away Ashes loss.
The current battle will be completed in only 11 days of play – after England fell the first two Tests in two and four days respectively.
The last time 1921, when Australia sealed a series win in England in eight days, has the outcome of the Ashes urn been decided so quickly. Australia have also triumphed in 11 days on two other occasions in the modern era.
"This is disappointing," said Crawley. "Our goal was to regain the Ashes and now we are staring down the barrel now."
"There remains plenty to play for and we'll certainly approach it with that mindset," Crawley added.
"It's been difficult. They're a very, very good side. It was inevitably tough touring here against them. They were the favourites and they've proven why."
Ollie Pope's Position In Question
While the opener's innings in the third Test probably answers doubts about his short-term place in the England team, Ollie Pope looks under immense pressure for his position in the Melbourne Test on Boxing Day.
The Surrey batsman fell for 17 runs in the team's second knock on day four, adding to his poor record against Australia.
In 16 Ashes innings, Pope has never made a half-century and boasts an average of 17.62.
Only one other English batsman since 1900 – Amiss – has played an equal number of innings in the top six in Ashes Tests and returned a lower average.
However, the opener insisted any notion his teammate is being scrutinised comes from "the media" – meaning the journalists – "not inside the camp."
"We all know of his considerable talent," added he. "Ollie has enjoyed a good year if I'm honest."
"He has played several excellent innings. This is noise externally. There is no chat of that nature regarding Pope amongst the players," Crawley concluded.
