England opener Zak Crawley suggested he was not familiar with comments made by skipper Ben Stokes regarding the dressing room as no place for "weak men".
Stokes made this message in several interviews following his team's defeat in the second Ashes against the Australians previously.
In the lead-up to the Adelaide Test, where the visitors are staring at a series loss with a match to spare, the captain stated he had allowed his sentiment to "drift around" within the squad.
"I've done all the talking over the past two days that I needed to have done," said the England leader.
But, following Crawley made 85 on the penultimate day in Adelaide, he stated: "I didn't see that."
"I wasn't actively searching 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
The captain made the "fragile individuals" observation subsequent to England were beaten in the second Test to go two matches behind.
The team subsequently took a break to a Queensland resort between the second and third matches.
Before the Adelaide contest, Stokes said his players had held "raw" conversations and he had urged them to "show a bit of dog" in their battle to stay in contention in the series.
Nevertheless, the Kent batsman stated the guidance from Stokes and coach McCullum had stayed consistent with their previous tenure in charge.
"The atmosphere has been extremely upbeat, the same as always," said the opener. "It's just trying to be optimistic, play our way, with great liberty. It felt like we could do something special entering this Test."
Australia On the Verge of Rapid Ashes Triumph
The opener's wicket on day four was part of a crucial triple-strike by Australia off-spinner Lyon.
The spinner's three wickets in a short spell – he also bowled Brook and Stokes himself – left the chasing side 207-6 in pursuit of a daunting target of 435 runs.
Consequently, Australia require just four more wickets on Sunday's last day to move to an insurmountable 3-0 lead after three matches played.
A loss will extend the English team's drought in Australia to 18 consecutive matches and ensure a fourth straight away Ashes series defeat.
The current battle is set to be decided in only 11 days of play – after England losing the initial matches in two and four days each.
The last time 1921, when Australia completed victory in the UK in eight days, has the outcome of the Ashes urn been determined so quickly. The hosts have also won in eleven days on two other occasions in the 21st century.
"It's disappointing," said Crawley. "We came here to regain the Ashes and now we are facing elimination at this point."
"There remains plenty to play for and we will certainly approach it with that mindset," Crawley added.
"The challenge has been tough. Australia is a very, very good team. It was inevitably tough touring here to face them. They were the favourites and they've proven why."
Ollie Pope's Place In Question
Although Crawley's performance in the third Test likely secures questions about his short-term future in the England team, Pope looks under immense pressure for his position in the fourth Test on Boxing Day.
The Surrey batsman was out for 17 runs in the team's second knock on Saturday, adding to his poor record versus the old enemy.
Across sixteen Ashes knocks, the Surrey man has never made a half-century and boasts an average of just 17.62.
Only one other English batsman in over a century – Amiss – has featured an equal number of innings in the top six in the Ashes and returned a poorer average.
But, Crawley said any suggestion Pope is under the microscope originates with "the media" – referring to the journalists – "and not within the team."
"The squad is fully aware of his considerable talent," said he. "He has had a good year if I'm honest."
"He has produced some really good knocks. It is talk externally. There is no chat like that on Ollie amongst the players," he finished.
