The English opener Zak Crawley has indicated he had no knowledge of statements made by captain Ben Stokes about the dressing room as no place for "those lacking fortitude".
The all-rounder made this message in multiple interviews in the wake of his team's loss in the second Ashes series against the Australians earlier this month.
In the lead-up to the Adelaide Test, where England are staring at a series loss with a match to spare, Stokes noted he had allowed his sentiment to "circulate freely" among the squad.
"I have completed all the talking over the past two days that I needed to have done," remarked the England leader.
But, after the opener scored 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. Our approach is to take anything stated in the press with a pinch of salt," Crawley continued.
Raw Conversations and Consistent Messaging
The captain issued his "fragile individuals" observation subsequent to England suffered a loss in Brisbane to fall two matches behind.
The team subsequently took a holiday to a Queensland resort between the second and third Tests.
Prior to this match, Stokes said his players had held "raw" conversations and he had asked them to "display some fight" in their effort to remain alive in the series.
Yet, Crawley stated the messaging from the captain and head coach McCullum had stayed in line with their previous tenure in leadership.
"It's been very positive, unchanged," noted the opener. "The focus is just trying to be optimistic, playing our brand, with lots of freedom. It felt like we could do something special entering this game."
The Hosts On the Verge of Historic Ashes Triumph
The opener's dismissal on day four came during a decisive three-wicket burst by Australia spinner Lyon.
Lyon's three wickets in 20 deliveries – including the wickets of Harry Brook and Stokes himself – meant the chasing side 207-6 in pursuit of a daunting target of 435.
Consequently, the home team need just four more wickets on Sunday's last day to secure an unassailable three-nil advantage with three matches played.
Defeat will extend the English team's drought in Australia to 18 Tests and ensure a fourth successive overseas Ashes defeat.
The current battle will be completed in only eleven days of cricket – with England fell the first two Tests in rapid time each.
The last time 1921, when the Australians completed victory in England in eight days, has the destination of the Ashes urn been decided so quickly. The hosts have also triumphed in eleven days on two other instances in the modern era.
"This is disappointing," admitted Crawley. "Our goal was to regain the Ashes and we're facing elimination at this point."
"There will still be plenty to play for and we will certainly approach it like that," Crawley added.
"The challenge has been difficult. Australia is a very, very good team. It was inevitably hard touring here to face them. They entered as the front-runners coming in to it they've proven why."
Pope's Place Under Scrutiny
Although the opener's performance in the third Test likely secures doubts about his short-term future in the side, Ollie Pope appears under threat for his spot in the fourth Test starting December 26th.
The Surrey batsman fell for 17 runs in the team's second innings on day four, extending his poor record versus Australia.
Across sixteen Ashes knocks, the Surrey man has failed to score a fifty and averages just 17.62.
A solitary other English batsman since 1900 – Dennis Amiss – has played as many times in the top six in Ashes Tests and recorded a lower average.
But, Crawley insisted any notion Pope is under the microscope comes from "the media" – meaning the press – "and not within the team."
"The squad is fully aware how good of a player he is," added Crawley. "He has had a productive year to be frank."
"He has produced some really good knocks. It is talk externally. There is no chat like that on Ollie in the camp," Crawley finished.
