England opener Zak Crawley suggested he had no knowledge of comments made by skipper Ben Stokes about the team environment as no place for "weak men".
The all-rounder delivered this message in multiple interviews in the wake of England's defeat in the second match of the Ashes series against the Australians earlier this month.
In the lead-up to the Adelaide Test, where the visitors are staring at defeat at the earliest opportunity, the captain stated he had let his sentiment to "drift around" within the playing group.
"I've done all the talking over the past two days that I required," said the England leader.
However, after Crawley scored a knock of 85 on the penultimate day in the third Test, he commented: "I didn't see that."
"I didn't see and wasn't really looking out for it. We take everything that is said in the media with some skepticism," Crawley continued.
Raw Conversations and Steady Philosophy
Stokes made the "weak men" observation after England were beaten in the second Test to fall two matches behind.
The England squad subsequently went on a break to a Queensland resort between the second and third matches.
Before the Adelaide contest, he revealed his players had held "honest" talks and he had urged them to "display some fight" in their battle to stay alive in the series.
Nevertheless, Crawley stated the messaging from Stokes and head coach McCullum had remained consistent with their previous tenure in leadership.
"The atmosphere has been very positive, the same as always," said the opener. "The focus is on maintaining positivity, playing our brand, with lots of freedom. It felt like we were capable of an extraordinary feat going into this game."
The Hosts On the Verge of Rapid Series Victory
Crawley's wicket on day four came during a decisive three-wicket burst by Australian spinner Nathan Lyon.
Lyon's triple strike in 20 deliveries – he also bowled Brook and Ben Stokes – meant the chasing side six down for 207 in pursuit of a notional target of 435 runs.
Consequently, the home team need four wickets on Sunday's last day to secure an unassailable three-nil advantage with three matches played.
A loss will extend England's drought in this country to 18 consecutive matches and condemn them to a fourth straight overseas Ashes series loss.
The current battle is set to be decided in only eleven days of play – with England losing the first two Tests in rapid time each.
Not since 1921, when Australia completed a series win in England in eight days, has the destination of the Ashes urn been determined more swiftly. The hosts have also triumphed in eleven days on two other occasions in the 21st century.
"It's disheartening," admitted the batsman. "We came here to win the Ashes and we're staring down the barrel now."
"There remains significant pride at stake and we will definitely view it like that," Crawley added.
"It's been difficult. They're a formidable team. It was inevitably hard coming here against them. They were the favourites coming in to it they've proven why."
Pope's Place Under Scrutiny
While Crawley's innings in the third Test probably answers questions about his immediate future in the England team, Pope looks under immense pressure for his spot in the fourth Test on Boxing Day.
The Surrey batsman fell for 17 runs in England's second innings on Saturday, extending his poor record against Australia.
Across 16 Ashes innings, Pope has never made a fifty and averages 17.62.
A solitary other England player since 1900 – Dennis Amiss – has featured as many times in the top order in the Ashes and recorded a lower average.
But, the opener said any suggestion his teammate is being scrutinised comes from "the media" – referring to the press – "not inside the camp."
"We all know how good of a player he is," added Crawley. "He has had a good year if I'm honest."
"He has played some really good knocks. This is noise from the outside. There is no discussion of that nature on Ollie in the camp," Crawley finished.
