England opener Zak Crawley suggested he was not familiar with comments from skipper Ben Stokes about the dressing room not being "weak men".
The all-rounder made this message in multiple interviews following England's defeat in the second Ashes series versus Australia previously.
Ahead of the Adelaide Test, where the visitors now face a series loss at the earliest opportunity, Stokes stated he had let his sentiment to "drift around" within the squad.
"I've done all the talking in recent days that I required," remarked Stokes.
But, after the opener scored a knock of 85 on the penultimate day in the third Test, he commented: "I missed those remarks."
"I wasn't actively searching for it. Our approach is to take everything that is said in the media with some skepticism," Crawley continued.
Raw Conversations and Steady Philosophy
Stokes issued his "weak men" comment subsequent to England suffered a loss in the second Test to go 2-0 down.
The team afterwards went on a holiday to Noosa in the gap between the second and third Tests.
Before the Adelaide contest, Stokes said his team had held "raw" talks and he had urged them to "show a bit of dog" in their battle to stay alive in the series.
Yet, Crawley stated the guidance from the captain and head coach Brendon McCullum had remained in line with their previous tenure in charge.
"The atmosphere has been extremely upbeat, the same as always," noted Crawley. "The focus is just trying to be optimistic, play our way, with lots of freedom. It felt like we could do something special entering this Test."
Australia Close of Rapid Ashes Triumph
Crawley's dismissal on day four came during a decisive triple-strike by Australia spinner Lyon.
Lyon's triple strike in a short spell – he also bowled Harry Brook and Stokes himself – left England 207-6 chasing a daunting target of 435.
Consequently, the home team require four wickets on Sunday's final day to secure an unassailable 3-0 lead with three matches played.
Defeat will extend England's winless run in Australia to 18 consecutive matches and condemn them to a fourth successive away Ashes series loss.
The current battle is set to be decided in just 11 days of cricket – with England losing the first two Tests in rapid time each.
The last time 1921, when Australia sealed victory in England in eight days, has the outcome of the urn been determined more swiftly. The hosts have also triumphed in eleven days on two other occasions in the modern era.
"This is disheartening," admitted the batsman. "Our goal was to win the Ashes and now we are staring down the barrel at this point."
"There remains significant pride at stake and we'll certainly approach it with that mindset," he continued.
"The challenge has been tough. They're a very, very good side. It was always going to be hard coming here against them. They were the front-runners and have demonstrated their quality."
Ollie Pope's Place In Question
While the opener's innings in the third Test likely secures doubts about his short-term future in the side, Ollie Pope looks under immense pressure for his position in the fourth Test on Boxing Day.
Pope fell for 17 in England's second innings on Saturday, adding to his modest returns versus the old enemy.
Across sixteen Ashes knocks, the Surrey man has never made a half-century and averages 17.62.
A solitary other England player since 1900 – Amiss – has played as many times in the top order in the Ashes and returned a poorer average.
However, the opener said any suggestion Pope is being scrutinised originates with "the media" – meaning the press – "not inside the camp."
"We all know of his considerable talent," said Crawley. "Ollie has enjoyed a good year to be frank."
"He has played some really good knocks. This is noise externally. There's no chat of that nature regarding Pope amongst the players," Crawley concluded.
