The English opening batter Zak Crawley suggested he was not familiar with comments from skipper Ben Stokes regarding the dressing room as no place for "those lacking fortitude".
Stokes made those words in several conversations in the wake of England's defeat in the second match of the Ashes against the Australians previously.
Ahead of the third Test, where the visitors are staring at defeat with a match to spare, the captain noted he had let his message to "drift around" among the playing group.
"I've done the necessary discussions in recent days that I required," said Stokes.
However, following Crawley made a knock of 85 on the penultimate day in the third Test, he commented: "I missed those remarks."
"I didn't see and wasn't really looking out for it. Our approach is to take anything stated in the media with some skepticism," he added.
Frank Discussions and Steady Philosophy
The captain issued his "weak men" observation subsequent to England suffered a loss in Brisbane to fall two matches behind.
The England squad afterwards went on a holiday to a Queensland resort between the second and third matches.
Before this match, Stokes revealed his team had held "honest" conversations and he had asked them to "display some fight" in their effort to stay in contention in the Ashes battle.
Nevertheless, the Kent batsman stated the guidance from Stokes and head coach McCullum had remained in line with their prior tenure in leadership.
"The atmosphere has been very positive, the same as always," noted Crawley. "The focus is just trying to be optimistic, playing our brand, with great liberty. We believed we were capable of an extraordinary feat entering this game."
Australia Close of Rapid Series Victory
Crawley's dismissal late on Saturday came during a crucial three-wicket burst by Australian spinner Lyon.
The spinner's triple strike in a short spell – including the wickets of Harry Brook and Ben Stokes – meant England 207-6 in pursuit of a notional target of 435 runs.
This means, the home team need just four more wickets on Sunday's last day to secure an unassailable three-nil lead after three matches played.
Defeat would prolong England's winless run in this country to 18 Tests and ensure a fourth straight overseas Ashes series loss.
This series is set to be decided in just 11 days of cricket – with England losing the first two Tests in two and four days respectively.
Not since 1921, when Australia sealed victory in England in eight days, has the destination of the Ashes urn been decided so quickly. The hosts have also won in eleven days on two other occasions in the modern era.
"This is disheartening," said Crawley. "We came here to regain the Ashes and now we are facing elimination at this point."
"There remains significant pride at stake and we will definitely view it with that mindset," Crawley added.
"The challenge has been tough. They're a very, very good team. It was always going to be tough coming here against them. They were the front-runners and they've proven why."
Ollie Pope's Position In Question
While Crawley's performance in the third Test probably answers doubts about his short-term place in the England team, Ollie Pope looks under immense pressure for his position in the fourth Test starting December 26th.
The Surrey batsman was out for 17 runs in England's second knock on day four, adding to his poor record against Australia.
In 16 Ashes innings, Pope has never made a half-century and averages 17.62.
Only one other English batsman in over a century – Amiss – has played as many times in the top six in the Ashes and returned a poorer average.
But, Crawley said any notion his teammate is under the microscope originates with "you guys" – referring to the journalists – "and not within the team."
"We all know of his considerable talent," added he. "He has had a good year if I'm honest."
"He has played several excellent innings. This is noise from the outside. There is no chat like that on Ollie amongst the players," he finished.
