The English opening batter Zak Crawley suggested he was not familiar with statements from skipper Stokes about the dressing room not being "those lacking fortitude".
The all-rounder made this message in multiple interviews following England's defeat in the second Ashes versus the Australians previously.
Ahead of the third Test, where the visitors are staring at a series loss at the earliest opportunity, the captain stated he had let his message to "drift around" among the squad.
"I've done all the talking over the past two days that I needed to have done," remarked Stokes.
However, after Crawley scored 85 on the penultimate day in the third Test, he commented: "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 Steady Philosophy
The captain made the "weak men" observation subsequent to England were beaten in Brisbane to fall 2-0 down.
The team subsequently went on a break to a Queensland resort in the gap between the second and the upcoming Tests.
Prior to the Adelaide contest, Stokes said his players had held "raw" conversations and he had urged them to "display some fight" in their battle to stay alive in the series.
Yet, Crawley stated the messaging from the captain and coach Brendon McCullum had stayed consistent with their previous tenure in charge.
"The atmosphere has been very positive, the same as always," noted Crawley. "It's just trying to be optimistic, play our way, with lots of freedom. It felt like we could do an extraordinary feat going into this Test."
Australia On the Verge of Historic Series Victory
Crawley's wicket on day four was part of a decisive three-wicket burst by Australian spinner Nathan Lyon.
The spinner's triple strike in a short spell – he also bowled Brook and Stokes himself – meant the chasing side six down for 207 in pursuit of a notional target of 435.
Consequently, Australia need four wickets on Sunday's last day to secure an insurmountable 3-0 lead with three Tests.
Defeat will extend the English team's winless run in Australia to 18 Tests and condemn them to a fourth successive away Ashes series defeat.
This series is set to be decided in only eleven days of cricket – after England losing the initial matches in two and four days each.
The last time 1921, when the Australians sealed a series win in England in eight days, has the outcome of the urn been determined so quickly. Australia have also triumphed in 11 days on two other occasions in the modern era.
"This is disheartening," admitted the batsman. "We came here to regain the Ashes and we're staring down the barrel now."
"There will still be significant pride at stake and we'll definitely view it with that mindset," Crawley added.
"It's been tough. They're a very, very good team. It was inevitably hard coming here to face them. They were the favourites coming in to it they've proven why."
Ollie Pope's Place Under Scrutiny
While the opener's performance in Adelaide probably answers questions about his short-term future in the side, Pope appears under threat for his spot in the fourth Test starting December 26th.
Pope fell for 17 in the team's second knock on day four, extending his poor record versus the old enemy.
In 16 Ashes innings, the Surrey man has failed to score a half-century and averages 17.62.
Only one other England player since 1900 – Amiss – has played as many times in the top six in the Ashes and recorded a poorer average.
However, Crawley said any suggestion his teammate is being scrutinised originates with "you guys" – meaning the journalists – "and not within the team."
"We all know how good of a player he is," added he. "Ollie has enjoyed a good year if I'm honest."
"He has played some really good knocks. This is noise from the outside. There's no discussion like that regarding Pope amongst the players," Crawley concluded.
