The English opener Zak Crawley suggested he was not familiar with comments from captain Stokes regarding the team environment as no place for "those lacking fortitude".
Stokes made those words in several conversations following England's loss in the second Ashes series versus the Australians earlier this month.
In the lead-up to the Adelaide Test, where the visitors are staring at defeat with a match to spare, Stokes stated he had let his sentiment to "circulate freely" within the playing group.
"I've done all the talking in recent days that I needed to have done," said the England leader.
But, after the opener made 85 on the penultimate day in the third Test, he stated: "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 Consistent Messaging
Stokes issued his "fragile individuals" comment after his side were beaten in Brisbane to go 2-0 down.
The team afterwards went on a holiday to a Queensland resort between the second and the upcoming Tests.
Prior to the Adelaide contest, Stokes said his players had held "honest" talks and he had asked them to "show a bit of dog" in their effort to stay in contention in the series.
Nevertheless, the Kent batsman stated the messaging from Stokes and coach Brendon McCullum had remained in line with their prior tenure in charge.
"The atmosphere has been extremely upbeat, the same as always," said Crawley. "It's just trying to be optimistic, play our way, with great liberty. We believed we could do an extraordinary feat going into this Test."
Australia On the Verge of Historic Ashes Triumph
The opener's wicket late on Saturday was part of a crucial three-wicket burst by Australia off-spinner Lyon.
Lyon's triple strike in 20 deliveries – including the wickets of Brook and Ben Stokes – left England 207-6 in pursuit of a daunting total of 435 runs.
This means, the home team need four wickets on Sunday's final day to move to an insurmountable three-nil lead with three matches played.
A loss will extend England's winless run in this country to 18 Tests and condemn them to a fourth straight away Ashes series loss.
The current battle is set to be decided in only 11 days of play – after England losing the initial matches in rapid time respectively.
The last time 1921, when Australia completed a series win in the UK in eight days, has the outcome of the Ashes urn been decided more swiftly. The hosts have also won in 11 days on two other occasions in the 21st century.
"This is disappointing," admitted Crawley. "We came here to regain the Ashes and we're staring down the barrel now."
"There remains plenty to play for and we'll definitely view it with that mindset," Crawley added.
"It's been difficult. They're a formidable team. It was always going to be tough touring here to face them. They entered as the favourites and they've proven why."
Pope's Position Under Scrutiny
While Crawley's performance in Adelaide probably answers questions about his immediate place in the England team, Ollie Pope appears under threat for his position in the Melbourne Test starting December 26th.
Pope fell for 17 runs in the team's second innings on Saturday, adding to his modest returns versus Australia.
In sixteen Ashes knocks, Pope has failed to score a fifty and boasts an average of 17.62.
A solitary other English batsman in over a century – Amiss – has featured as many times in the top six in Ashes Tests and returned a poorer average.
But, the opener said any notion his teammate is being scrutinised originates with "the media" – meaning the press – "and not within the team."
"We all know of his considerable talent," added Crawley. "He has had a good year to be frank."
"He has produced several excellent innings. It is noise externally. There is no discussion of that nature regarding Pope amongst the players," he finished.
