The English opener Zak Crawley suggested he was not familiar with statements from skipper Stokes about the team environment as no place for "weak men".
The all-rounder delivered those words in several conversations following England's defeat in the second match of the Ashes series versus the Australians previously.
In the lead-up to the Adelaide Test, where the visitors now face a series loss at the earliest opportunity, the captain stated he had let his message to "drift around" within the playing group.
"I have completed the necessary discussions in recent days that I required," said the England leader.
However, after the opener made a knock of 85 on the penultimate day in the third Test, he commented: "I didn't see that."
"I didn't see and wasn't really looking out for it. We take anything stated in the press with some skepticism," Crawley continued.
Frank Discussions and Consistent Messaging
The captain issued his "fragile individuals" observation subsequent to England were beaten in Brisbane to fall 2-0 down.
The England squad subsequently took a break to Noosa in the gap between the second and third Tests.
Prior to the Adelaide contest, Stokes said his team had held "raw" talks and he had urged them to "show a bit of dog" in their battle to remain in contention in the series.
Yet, the Kent batsman asserted the messaging from the captain and coach Brendon McCullum had remained consistent with their prior tenure in charge.
"The atmosphere has been very positive, the same as always," noted Crawley. "It's just trying to be optimistic, playing our brand, with lots of freedom. We believed we were capable of something special entering this Test."
Australia On the Verge of Historic Series Victory
Crawley's wicket on day four came during a decisive triple-strike by Australian spinner Nathan Lyon.
Lyon's three wickets in a short spell – he also bowled Brook and Stokes himself – meant England 207-6 chasing a notional total of 435.
This means, Australia need just four more wickets on the final day to secure an unassailable 3-0 lead with three Tests.
Defeat would prolong the English team's drought in Australia to 18 Tests and condemn them to a fourth straight overseas Ashes defeat.
This series will be completed in only eleven days of play – with England fell the first two Tests in rapid time each.
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. The hosts have also won in 11 days on two other instances in the modern era.
"This is disappointing," admitted Crawley. "Our goal was to regain the Ashes and we're staring down the barrel at this point."
"There will still be plenty to play for and we will certainly approach it with that mindset," he continued.
"The challenge has been tough. Australia is a formidable team. It was always going to be hard touring here to face them. They were the favourites and have demonstrated their quality."
Ollie Pope's Place In Question
Although Crawley's performance in Adelaide probably answers doubts about his immediate place in the side, Pope appears under threat for his position in the Melbourne Test starting December 26th.
Pope fell for 17 in the team's second innings on Saturday, adding to his poor record against the old enemy.
Across sixteen Ashes knocks, the Surrey man has failed to score a fifty and boasts an average of 17.62.
A solitary other England player since 1900 – Dennis Amiss – has played as many times in the top six in Ashes Tests and returned a lower average.
But, the opener said any notion Pope is under the microscope originates with "the media" – referring to the press – "not inside the camp."
"The squad is fully aware how good of a player he is," added he. "Ollie has enjoyed a productive year to be frank."
"He has produced several excellent innings. This is noise externally. There is no discussion of that nature regarding Pope amongst the players," he concluded.
