England opening batter Zak Crawley suggested he had no knowledge of comments from skipper Stokes regarding the team environment not being "those lacking fortitude".
Stokes delivered this message in multiple conversations in the wake of his team's loss in the second match of the Ashes against the Australians previously.
Ahead of the Adelaide Test, where the visitors now face defeat with a match to spare, the captain noted he had allowed his sentiment to "circulate freely" among the playing group.
"I've done the necessary discussions in recent days that I needed to have done," said the England leader.
However, after Crawley scored 85 on the penultimate day in the third Test, he commented: "I missed those remarks."
"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 Consistent Messaging
The captain made the "fragile individuals" comment after England suffered a loss in the second Test to fall two matches behind.
The England squad subsequently took a holiday to a Queensland resort in the gap between the second and the upcoming Tests.
Prior to this match, Stokes revealed his team had held "raw" talks and he had urged them to "show a bit of dog" in their effort to remain alive in the series.
Nevertheless, the Kent batsman stated the guidance from the captain and coach Brendon McCullum had stayed consistent with their previous tenure in leadership.
"It's been extremely upbeat, unchanged," noted Crawley. "It's on maintaining positivity, playing our brand, with lots of freedom. We believed we could do something special entering this Test."
The Hosts Close of Historic Series Victory
The opener's dismissal on day four was part of a decisive triple-strike by Australian spinner Nathan Lyon.
Lyon's triple strike in 20 deliveries – including the wickets of Brook and Ben Stokes – meant the chasing side six down for 207 chasing a notional total of 435.
This means, Australia need just four more wickets on the last day to move to an unassailable 3-0 lead after three Tests.
Defeat will extend England's drought in this country to 18 Tests and condemn them to a fourth straight away Ashes defeat.
The current battle will be completed in only eleven days of cricket – after England losing the first two Tests in rapid time respectively.
The last time 1921, when Australia completed victory in the UK in eight days, has the destination of the Ashes urn been determined so quickly. Australia have also triumphed in eleven days on two other occasions in the modern era.
"It's disheartening," admitted 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 certainly approach it with that mindset," Crawley added.
"It's been tough. They're a formidable team. It was inevitably tough coming here to face them. They entered as the front-runners and have demonstrated their quality."
Ollie Pope's Position In Question
Although the opener's innings in Adelaide probably answers questions about his short-term future in the side, Ollie Pope looks under immense pressure for his spot in the Melbourne Test on Boxing Day.
Pope fell for 17 in the team's second knock on day four, adding to his poor record against the old enemy.
In sixteen Ashes knocks, the Surrey man has failed to score a fifty and boasts an average of 17.62.
Only one other England player since 1900 – Amiss – has played as many times in the top order in the Ashes and returned a lower average.
But, the opener insisted any suggestion his teammate is being scrutinised originates with "the media" – meaning the journalists – "not inside the camp."
"The squad is fully aware how good of a player he is," added Crawley. "He has had a productive year to be frank."
"He has played several excellent innings. It is talk from the outside. There's no chat of that nature on Ollie in the camp," he concluded.
