The English opener Zak Crawley suggested he had no knowledge of comments made by captain Ben Stokes about the dressing room as no place for "those lacking fortitude".
The all-rounder made this message in multiple conversations in the wake of England's loss in the second match of the Ashes versus the Australians earlier this month.
Ahead of the Adelaide Test, where England now face defeat with a match to spare, the captain noted he had allowed his sentiment to "circulate freely" among the playing group.
"I've done all the talking over the past two days that I required," remarked Stokes.
But, following the opener scored a knock of 85 on the penultimate 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 everything that is said in the media with a pinch of salt," he added.
Raw Conversations and Steady Philosophy
Stokes made the "fragile individuals" observation subsequent to his side were beaten in Brisbane to fall two matches behind.
The England squad subsequently took a holiday to a Queensland resort in the gap between the second and third matches.
Prior to this match, Stokes revealed his team had held "honest" talks and he had asked them to "display some fight" in their battle to remain in contention in the Ashes battle.
Yet, the Kent batsman stated the messaging from Stokes and head coach Brendon McCullum had stayed consistent with their prior tenure in charge.
"The atmosphere has been very positive, the same as always," said Crawley. "It's just trying to be optimistic, playing our brand, with lots of freedom. It felt like we could do an extraordinary feat entering this Test."
The Hosts Close of Historic Series Victory
Crawley's wicket on day four was part of a crucial three-wicket burst by Australia off-spinner Nathan Lyon.
Lyon's triple strike in a short spell – he also bowled Harry Brook and Stokes himself – meant the chasing side 207-6 in pursuit of a daunting total of 435.
This means, the home team need four wickets on Sunday's final day to move to an unassailable three-nil lead with three Tests.
A loss would prolong the English team's winless run in this country to 18 consecutive matches and ensure a fourth successive overseas Ashes series loss.
This series will be completed in only eleven 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 destination of the Ashes urn been determined more swiftly. Australia have also won in 11 days on two other instances in the 21st century.
"This is disappointing," admitted Crawley. "Our goal was to regain the Ashes and now we are staring down the barrel at this point."
"There will still be significant pride at stake and we'll definitely view it like that," Crawley added.
"The challenge has been tough. Australia is a formidable side. It was always going to be tough touring here against them. They entered as the front-runners coming in to it they've proven why."
Ollie Pope's Place Under Scrutiny
While Crawley's innings in the third Test probably answers doubts about his short-term place in the England team, Pope looks under immense pressure for his position in the fourth Test on Boxing Day.
Pope was out for 17 in the team's second innings on Saturday, adding to his poor record against Australia.
In sixteen Ashes knocks, the Surrey man has never made a half-century and averages 17.62.
Only one other English batsman since 1900 – Dennis Amiss – has played an equal number of innings in the top order in Ashes Tests and returned a lower average.
But, Crawley insisted any notion Pope is being scrutinised comes from "the media" – meaning the journalists – "not inside the camp."
"The squad is fully aware how good of a player he is," said Crawley. "He has had a productive year if I'm honest."
"He has produced several excellent innings. This is noise externally. There is no discussion of that nature regarding Pope in the camp," he finished.
