The English opening batter Zak Crawley suggested he had no knowledge of comments from captain Stokes about the dressing room as no place for "those lacking fortitude".
The all-rounder made those words in several conversations in the wake of his team's loss in the second Ashes against Australia previously.
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 allowed his message to "drift around" among the squad.
"I have completed all the talking in recent days that I required," remarked Stokes.
But, following the opener scored a knock of 85 on the fourth 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 a pinch of salt," Crawley continued.
Raw Conversations and Consistent Messaging
Stokes made the "fragile individuals" observation after his side were beaten in the second Test to fall 2-0 down.
The team subsequently took a holiday to Noosa in the gap between the second and the upcoming matches.
Prior to this match, he said his players had held "honest" talks and he had asked them to "show a bit of dog" in their effort to remain alive in the series.
Nevertheless, Crawley stated the messaging from Stokes and head coach Brendon McCullum had remained in line with their prior three years in leadership.
"The atmosphere has been extremely upbeat, unchanged," said Crawley. "The focus is on maintaining positivity, playing our brand, with lots of freedom. It felt like we could do an extraordinary feat going into this Test."
The Hosts Close of Historic Series Victory
The opener's wicket on day four came during a crucial triple-strike by Australian off-spinner Lyon.
Lyon's triple strike in a short spell – he also bowled Harry Brook and Stokes himself – meant the chasing side six down for 207 in pursuit of a notional target of 435 runs.
Consequently, the home team need just four more wickets on the last day to secure an unassailable three-nil advantage with three Tests.
A loss would prolong England's drought in this country to 18 Tests and condemn them to a fourth straight overseas Ashes defeat.
The current battle is set to be decided in just 11 days of cricket – after England fell the first two Tests 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 determined more swiftly. The hosts have also won in 11 days on two other occasions in the 21st century.
"It's disappointing," said the batsman. "We came here to regain the Ashes and we're facing elimination at this point."
"There remains plenty to play for and we will certainly approach it with that mindset," he continued.
"It's been difficult. Australia is a formidable side. It was always going to be hard coming here against them. They were the front-runners coming in to it they've proven why."
Ollie Pope's Position In Question
While Crawley's innings in Adelaide likely secures doubts about his short-term place in the England team, Pope appears under immense pressure for his position in the Melbourne Test on Boxing Day.
The Surrey batsman fell for 17 in the team's second knock on day four, adding to his poor record against the old enemy.
In 16 Ashes innings, the Surrey man has failed to score a fifty and boasts an average of just 17.62.
A solitary other England player in over a century – Amiss – has featured as many times in the top order in the Ashes and recorded a lower average.
However, the opener said any notion his teammate is being scrutinised comes from "you guys" – meaning the journalists – "not inside the camp."
"The squad is fully aware how good of a player he is," said Crawley. "Ollie has enjoyed a productive year to be frank."
"He has produced some really good knocks. This is noise externally. There's no chat like that on Ollie amongst the players," he finished.
