England opener Zak Crawley suggested he had no knowledge of comments made by captain Stokes about the team environment not being "weak men".
The all-rounder made those words in multiple interviews following his team's loss in the second Ashes versus Australia earlier this month.
In the lead-up to the third Test, where England are staring at a series loss with a match to spare, Stokes stated he had let his sentiment to "circulate freely" within the playing group.
"I have completed all the talking over the past two days that I required," remarked Stokes.
However, after Crawley scored 85 on the penultimate day in the third Test, he stated: "I missed those remarks."
"I wasn't actively searching for it. Our approach is to take anything stated in the media with some skepticism," he added.
Raw Conversations and Steady Philosophy
The captain issued his "weak men" observation subsequent to his side were beaten in Brisbane to fall two matches behind.
The team afterwards went on a break to Noosa between the second and third Tests.
Prior to the Adelaide contest, he said his players had held "honest" talks and he had asked them to "display some fight" in their effort to remain alive in the Ashes battle.
Nevertheless, Crawley stated the messaging from Stokes and coach Brendon McCullum had stayed consistent with their prior three years in charge.
"It's been extremely upbeat, the same as always," said the opener. "The focus is just trying to be optimistic, playing our brand, with lots of freedom. It felt like we could do an extraordinary feat entering this Test."
Australia Close of Historic Ashes Triumph
Crawley's wicket on day four was part of a decisive triple-strike by Australian spinner Nathan Lyon.
The spinner's three wickets in 20 deliveries – including the wickets of Brook and Stokes himself – left England 207-6 chasing a daunting total of 435 runs.
This means, the home team need four wickets on the final day to secure an insurmountable 3-0 advantage after three Tests.
Defeat would prolong England's drought in Australia to 18 consecutive matches and ensure a fourth straight overseas Ashes defeat.
This series will be completed in just eleven days of cricket – with England losing the first two Tests in rapid time each.
The last time 1921, when Australia completed victory in England in eight days, has the destination of the Ashes urn been decided so quickly. Australia have also won in 11 days on two other instances in the modern era.
"It's disappointing," admitted Crawley. "We came here to win the Ashes and now we are facing elimination at this point."
"There will still be plenty to play for and we will definitely view it with that mindset," he continued.
"It's been tough. Australia is a formidable side. It was always going to be hard touring here to face them. They were the favourites coming in to it have demonstrated their quality."
Ollie Pope's Position Under Scrutiny
While Crawley's innings in Adelaide likely secures questions about his immediate place in the England team, Pope looks under threat for his position in the fourth Test on Boxing Day.
The Surrey batsman fell for 17 in the team's second innings on Saturday, adding to his poor record against the old enemy.
Across 16 Ashes innings, Pope has failed to score a half-century and averages 17.62.
A solitary other English batsman in over a century – Dennis Amiss – has featured as many times in the top order in Ashes Tests and returned a poorer average.
But, Crawley insisted any notion Pope is under the microscope originates with "the media" – referring to the journalists – "and not within the team."
"We all know how good of a player he is," said he. "He has had a productive year to be frank."
"He has played some really good knocks. This is noise externally. There is no discussion of that nature on Ollie amongst the players," Crawley finished.
