The English opener Zak Crawley suggested he had no knowledge of comments from captain Ben Stokes about the team environment as no place for "those lacking fortitude".
Stokes delivered this message in several conversations in the wake of his team's loss in the second Ashes versus the Australians previously.
In the lead-up to the third Test, where England are staring at defeat at the earliest opportunity, the captain stated he had allowed his message to "circulate freely" within the playing group.
"I have completed all the talking over the past two days that I needed to have done," said the England leader.
But, after Crawley made 85 on the penultimate 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.
Raw Conversations and Consistent Messaging
Stokes made the "weak men" comment after his side suffered a loss in Brisbane to fall 2-0 down.
The team afterwards took a break to Noosa in the gap between the second and third Tests.
Prior to the Adelaide contest, Stokes revealed his players had held "raw" talks and he had urged them to "show a bit of dog" in their effort to stay alive in the Ashes battle.
Nevertheless, the Kent batsman stated the guidance from Stokes and coach McCullum had remained in line with their previous tenure in leadership.
"The atmosphere has been very positive, the same as always," noted the opener. "It's on maintaining positivity, playing our brand, with great liberty. We believed we could do something special going into this Test."
Australia On the Verge of Historic Series Victory
The opener's dismissal late on Saturday came during a decisive triple-strike by Australia off-spinner Lyon.
Lyon's three wickets in 20 deliveries – he also bowled Harry Brook and Ben Stokes – left the chasing side 207-6 in pursuit of a notional target of 435.
This means, Australia require four wickets on the final day to move to an insurmountable 3-0 advantage after three matches played.
A loss will extend England's winless run in this country to 18 Tests and condemn them to a fourth successive overseas Ashes loss.
This series is set to be decided in only eleven days of cricket – after England losing the first two Tests in rapid time respectively.
Not since 1921, when the Australians completed a series win in England in eight days, has the outcome of the urn been decided more swiftly. The hosts have also won in 11 days on two other occasions in the modern era.
"It's disheartening," admitted the batsman. "We came here to win the Ashes and we're staring down the barrel at this point."
"There will still be significant pride at stake and we'll certainly approach it like that," he continued.
"It's been tough. They're a very, very good team. It was always going to be hard coming here against them. They entered as the favourites coming in to it they've proven why."
Ollie Pope's Place Under Scrutiny
Although the opener's performance in Adelaide likely secures questions about his immediate place in the side, Ollie Pope appears under immense pressure for his position in the fourth Test starting December 26th.
The Surrey batsman was out for 17 runs in the team's second knock on Saturday, extending his modest returns against the old enemy.
Across 16 Ashes innings, the Surrey man has never made a half-century and boasts an average of just 17.62.
A solitary other England player in over a century – Amiss – has featured an equal number of innings in the top order in Ashes Tests and returned a lower average.
However, Crawley said any notion Pope is under the microscope comes from "you guys" – meaning the press – "and not within the team."
"We all know of his considerable talent," said Crawley. "He has had a good year if I'm honest."
"He has produced several excellent innings. It is talk from the outside. There is no chat like that regarding Pope in the camp," Crawley concluded.
