England opening batter Zak Crawley suggested he had no knowledge of comments from skipper Stokes regarding the team environment as no place for "weak men".
Stokes delivered those words in several interviews following England's defeat in the second Ashes against Australia previously.
In the lead-up to the Adelaide Test, where the visitors now face a series loss at the earliest opportunity, 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," remarked the England leader.
But, following Crawley scored a knock of 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 press with some skepticism," Crawley continued.
Raw Conversations and Steady Philosophy
Stokes issued his "weak men" observation after his side suffered a loss in the second Test to go 2-0 down.
The England squad afterwards went on a holiday to Noosa in the gap between the second and the upcoming Tests.
Before this match, he revealed his team had held "honest" conversations and he had asked them to "show a bit of dog" in their battle to stay in contention in the Ashes battle.
Nevertheless, the Kent batsman stated the guidance from Stokes and coach Brendon McCullum had stayed consistent with their previous three years in charge.
"The atmosphere has been very positive, unchanged," noted Crawley. "The focus is just trying to be optimistic, play our way, with lots of freedom. We believed we were capable of something special going into this game."
Australia Close of Historic Ashes Triumph
The opener's wicket on day four came during a decisive three-wicket burst by Australian off-spinner Lyon.
Lyon's triple strike in a short spell – including the wickets of Harry Brook and Ben Stokes – left England six down for 207 chasing a notional total of 435.
Consequently, Australia require just four more wickets on the final day to move to an unassailable three-nil advantage after three Tests.
A loss will extend the English team's winless run in Australia to 18 consecutive matches and condemn them to a fourth straight overseas Ashes series defeat.
The current battle will be completed in just eleven days of cricket – after England losing the initial matches in two and four days each.
Not since 1921, when Australia completed victory in England in eight days, has the destination of the urn been determined more swiftly. Australia have also triumphed in 11 days on two other instances in the modern era.
"This is disappointing," said Crawley. "We came here to win the Ashes and we're staring down the barrel at this point."
"There remains plenty to play for and we'll definitely view it like that," he continued.
"The challenge has been tough. Australia is a very, very good team. It was always going to be tough coming here against them. They were the front-runners coming in to it they've proven why."
Pope's Position Under Scrutiny
While Crawley's performance in Adelaide likely secures questions about his immediate future in the England team, Ollie Pope appears under immense pressure for his position in the Melbourne Test starting December 26th.
Pope was out for 17 runs in England's second innings on day four, extending his poor record versus Australia.
Across 16 Ashes innings, the Surrey man has failed to score a fifty and boasts an average of 17.62.
Only one other English batsman since 1900 – Dennis Amiss – has played as many times in the top six in the Ashes and recorded a lower average.
However, the opener insisted any suggestion Pope is under the microscope originates with "the media" – meaning the press – "not inside the camp."
"We all know how good of a player he is," added Crawley. "Ollie has enjoyed a good year if I'm honest."
"He has played several excellent innings. It is talk from the outside. There's no chat of that nature regarding Pope amongst the players," he finished.
