England opener Zak Crawley suggested he was not familiar with comments from captain Ben Stokes about the dressing room not being "weak men".
The all-rounder made those words in multiple conversations following his team's defeat in the second match of the Ashes series versus the Australians earlier this month.
Ahead of the Adelaide Test, where the visitors now face a series loss with a match to spare, Stokes stated he had allowed his message to "drift around" within the playing group.
"I have completed the necessary discussions over the past two days that I needed to have done," said Stokes.
However, after Crawley scored 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," he added.
Raw Conversations and Consistent Messaging
The captain made the "weak men" comment after his side were beaten in Brisbane to go two matches behind.
The team subsequently took a break to Noosa between the second and the upcoming matches.
Prior to the Adelaide contest, Stokes revealed his players had held "raw" talks and he had asked them to "show a bit of dog" in their effort to stay alive in the Ashes battle.
Nevertheless, Crawley asserted the guidance from the captain and head coach McCullum had stayed consistent with their previous tenure in charge.
"It's been very positive, unchanged," noted Crawley. "It's on maintaining positivity, play our way, with lots of freedom. We believed we could do an extraordinary feat entering this game."
The Hosts Close of Rapid Series Victory
The opener's dismissal on day four was part of a crucial three-wicket burst by Australian off-spinner Nathan Lyon.
Lyon's three wickets in a short spell – he also bowled Harry Brook and Stokes himself – meant England six down for 207 in pursuit of a daunting target of 435.
This means, the home team need just four more wickets on the last day to move to an unassailable three-nil advantage with three matches played.
A loss will extend England's winless run in this country to 18 Tests and condemn them to a fourth straight away Ashes loss.
This series is set to be decided in only 11 days of play – after England fell the initial matches in rapid time respectively.
Not since 1921, when Australia completed a series win in England in eight days, has the outcome of the Ashes urn been decided so quickly. Australia have also won in eleven days on two other occasions in the 21st century.
"It's disheartening," said Crawley. "Our goal was to regain the Ashes and we're staring down the barrel now."
"There remains significant pride at stake and we will certainly approach it like that," he continued.
"The challenge has been tough. Australia is a formidable side. It was always going to be hard coming here to face them. They were the favourites and they've proven why."
Ollie Pope's Position In Question
Although the opener's innings in Adelaide likely secures doubts about his immediate place in the side, Ollie Pope appears under immense pressure for his spot in the fourth Test on Boxing Day.
Pope was out for 17 runs in the team's second innings on day four, extending his poor record versus Australia.
In sixteen Ashes knocks, Pope has failed to score a half-century and boasts an average of just 17.62.
A solitary other English batsman in over a century – Amiss – has featured an equal number of innings in the top order in Ashes Tests and recorded a lower average.
However, Crawley insisted any notion his teammate is being scrutinised comes from "you guys" – referring to the press – "not inside the camp."
"We all know how good of a player he is," said Crawley. "Ollie has enjoyed a good year to be frank."
"He has played several excellent innings. This is talk externally. There's no discussion of that nature on Ollie amongst the players," Crawley concluded.
