England 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 delivered this message in several conversations in the wake of England's defeat in the second Ashes series against Australia earlier this month.
Ahead of the third Test, where England are staring at a series loss at the earliest opportunity, the captain stated he had let his sentiment to "circulate freely" within the playing group.
"I have completed all the talking in recent days that I needed to have done," said Stokes.
However, after the opener scored 85 on the fourth day in Adelaide, he stated: "I missed those remarks."
"I wasn't actively searching for it. We take anything stated in the media with a pinch of salt," he added.
Frank Discussions and Steady Philosophy
The captain issued his "weak men" observation after his side were beaten in the second Test to fall 2-0 down.
The England squad subsequently took a break to a Queensland resort in the gap between the second and the upcoming matches.
Before the Adelaide contest, Stokes said his players had held "honest" conversations and he had urged them to "display some fight" in their battle to remain in contention in the series.
Nevertheless, the Kent batsman stated the messaging from the captain and head coach McCullum had remained in line with their previous tenure in leadership.
"The atmosphere has been very positive, the same as always," said the opener. "The focus is just trying to be optimistic, playing our brand, with great liberty. We believed we were capable of something special going into this game."
Australia Close of Historic Ashes Triumph
Crawley's dismissal late on Saturday came during a crucial triple-strike by Australia spinner Nathan Lyon.
Lyon's three wickets in a short spell – including the wickets of Brook and Stokes himself – left England six down for 207 in pursuit of a daunting total of 435 runs.
This means, Australia require just four more wickets on the final day to move to an insurmountable 3-0 lead with three Tests.
Defeat would prolong the English team's winless run in Australia to 18 consecutive matches and ensure a fourth straight away Ashes defeat.
This series is set to be decided in only 11 days of play – after England losing the first two Tests in rapid time each.
The last time 1921, when Australia completed victory in England in eight days, has the outcome of the urn been determined so quickly. Australia have also won in 11 days on two other instances in the 21st century.
"It's disheartening," admitted the batsman. "Our goal was to regain the Ashes and we're facing elimination now."
"There will still be plenty to play for and we'll certainly approach it like that," Crawley added.
"It's been difficult. Australia is a very, very good team. It was always going to be tough touring here against them. They were the favourites and they've proven why."
Pope's Place Under Scrutiny
Although Crawley's innings in Adelaide probably answers doubts about his short-term future in the side, Ollie Pope appears under threat for his position in the fourth Test on Boxing Day.
The Surrey batsman fell for 17 runs in the team's second innings on Saturday, extending his poor record against Australia.
In sixteen Ashes knocks, Pope has failed to score a half-century and boasts an average of 17.62.
Only one other England player since 1900 – Amiss – has featured an equal number of innings in the top six in the Ashes and recorded a lower average.
But, the opener insisted any notion Pope is under the microscope comes from "the media" – referring to the press – "and not within the team."
"The squad is fully aware of his considerable talent," added Crawley. "He has had a productive year to be frank."
"He has played some really good knocks. It is noise externally. There's no chat like that regarding Pope amongst the players," he finished.
