The English opening batter Zak Crawley suggested he had no knowledge of comments made by skipper Stokes regarding the dressing room as no place for "weak men".
The all-rounder delivered those words in several interviews following his team's defeat in the second Ashes series versus Australia earlier this month.
In the lead-up to the third Test, where the visitors are staring at a series loss with a match to spare, the captain noted he had allowed his message to "drift around" within the squad.
"I've done the necessary discussions over the past two days that I needed to have done," said the England leader.
However, following Crawley made 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 everything that is said in the media with some skepticism," Crawley continued.
Raw Conversations and Steady Philosophy
The captain made the "fragile individuals" observation subsequent to his side were beaten in Brisbane to fall 2-0 down.
The England squad subsequently took a break to Noosa between the second and the upcoming matches.
Prior to this match, he said his players had held "honest" talks and he had urged them to "display some fight" in their effort to stay alive in the series.
Yet, the Kent batsman stated the guidance from the captain and coach McCullum had remained in line with their prior tenure in leadership.
"The atmosphere has been very positive, unchanged," noted Crawley. "The focus is just trying to be optimistic, playing our brand, with great liberty. It felt like we could do an extraordinary feat entering this Test."
The Hosts On the Verge of Historic Ashes Triumph
Crawley's dismissal on day four came during a decisive three-wicket burst by Australian spinner Lyon.
Lyon's triple strike in a short spell – including the wickets of Brook and Stokes himself – left the chasing side six down for 207 chasing a notional target of 435 runs.
This means, the home team require just four more wickets on the last day to secure an insurmountable 3-0 lead with three matches played.
Defeat will extend the English team's drought in this country to 18 consecutive matches and ensure a fourth successive away Ashes series defeat.
The current battle is set to be decided in just eleven days of play – with England fell the initial matches in two and four days respectively.
Not since 1921, when the Australians completed a series win in England in eight days, has the destination of the urn been determined so quickly. The hosts have also won in 11 days on two other instances in the 21st century.
"This is disappointing," said Crawley. "Our goal was to regain the Ashes and now we are staring down the barrel at this point."
"There will still be plenty to play for and we'll certainly approach it with that mindset," he continued.
"It's been difficult. Australia is a formidable side. It was inevitably tough coming here against them. They were the favourites coming in to it have demonstrated their quality."
Pope's Place In Question
While Crawley's innings in Adelaide probably answers doubts about his short-term future in the side, Pope appears under immense pressure for his spot in the Melbourne Test starting December 26th.
Pope fell for 17 in England's second knock on Saturday, adding to his modest returns versus Australia.
Across sixteen Ashes knocks, Pope has failed to score a half-century and averages just 17.62.
A solitary other England player since 1900 – Dennis Amiss – has played an equal number of innings in the top six in the Ashes and recorded a poorer average.
However, the opener said any suggestion his teammate is being scrutinised originates with "you guys" – meaning the press – "not inside the camp."
"We all know how good of a player he is," said Crawley. "Ollie has enjoyed a productive year if I'm honest."
"He has produced some really good knocks. This is noise externally. There is no chat like that on Ollie amongst the players," he concluded.
