England opening batter Zak Crawley suggested he was not familiar with comments made by captain Ben Stokes regarding the dressing room as no place for "those lacking fortitude".
The all-rounder made those words in multiple interviews following his team's loss in the second match of the Ashes series against Australia previously.
Ahead of the Adelaide Test, where the visitors now face defeat at the earliest opportunity, the captain noted he had let his sentiment to "drift around" within the playing group.
"I've done the necessary discussions in recent days that I needed to have done," remarked the England leader.
However, after Crawley scored a knock of 85 on the fourth day in the third Test, he stated: "I didn't see that."
"I didn't see and wasn't really looking out for it. We take anything stated in the media with some skepticism," Crawley continued.
Raw Conversations and Steady Philosophy
The captain made the "weak men" comment after England suffered a loss in Brisbane to go 2-0 down.
The England squad subsequently went on a break to Noosa between the second and the upcoming matches.
Before the Adelaide contest, he said his team had held "honest" talks and he had asked them to "show a bit of dog" in their effort to stay in contention in the Ashes battle.
Nevertheless, the Kent batsman stated the guidance from Stokes and coach Brendon McCullum had remained consistent with their previous three years in charge.
"The atmosphere has been extremely upbeat, unchanged," noted the opener. "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 game."
The Hosts Close of Historic Ashes Triumph
The opener's dismissal late on Saturday was part of a decisive triple-strike by Australia off-spinner Nathan Lyon.
The spinner's triple strike in 20 deliveries – he also bowled Brook and Stokes himself – left England 207-6 in pursuit of a daunting target of 435 runs.
Consequently, Australia need just four more wickets on Sunday's final day to secure an unassailable three-nil advantage after three Tests.
Defeat will extend the English team's winless run in this country to 18 Tests and ensure a fourth straight overseas Ashes series defeat.
The current battle will be completed in only 11 days of cricket – with England losing the first two Tests in rapid time each.
Not since 1921, when Australia completed victory in England in eight days, has the outcome of the urn been decided so quickly. The hosts have also triumphed in 11 days on two other occasions in the 21st century.
"This is disheartening," admitted the batsman. "Our goal was to win the Ashes and we're staring down the barrel now."
"There will still be significant pride at stake and we will certainly approach it with that mindset," Crawley added.
"It's been difficult. They're a very, very good team. It was inevitably tough coming here to face them. They were the front-runners and have demonstrated their quality."
Ollie Pope's Position Under Scrutiny
While Crawley's innings in Adelaide probably answers questions about his short-term future in the England team, Ollie Pope appears under threat for his spot in the Melbourne Test on Boxing Day.
Pope fell for 17 in the team's second knock on Saturday, extending his modest returns against the old enemy.
In 16 Ashes innings, the Surrey man has failed to score a fifty and averages just 17.62.
A solitary other English batsman since 1900 – Dennis Amiss – has featured as many times in the top order in the Ashes and returned a lower average.
But, the opener said any notion Pope is being scrutinised originates with "you guys" – referring to the press – "not inside the camp."
"The squad is fully aware how good of a player he is," added he. "Ollie has enjoyed a productive year to be frank."
"He has produced several excellent innings. This is talk externally. There is no discussion of that nature on Ollie in the camp," Crawley finished.
