England opener Zak Crawley suggested he had no knowledge of statements made by captain Stokes about the dressing room as no place for "weak men".
The all-rounder made this message in multiple conversations in the wake of England's loss in the second match of the Ashes series against Australia previously.
Ahead of the third Test, where England are staring at a series loss at the earliest opportunity, Stokes stated he had allowed his message to "circulate freely" among the squad.
"I have completed the necessary discussions in recent days that I required," said Stokes.
But, after Crawley made a knock of 85 on the fourth day in Adelaide, he stated: "I missed those remarks."
"I wasn't actively searching for it. Our approach is to take anything stated in the media with a pinch of salt," he added.
Raw Conversations and Consistent Messaging
The captain made the "fragile individuals" comment subsequent to his side suffered a loss in the second Test to go two matches behind.
The team subsequently went on a holiday to Noosa in the gap between the second and third Tests.
Before this match, he said his team had held "raw" conversations and he had urged them to "show a bit of dog" in their battle to stay alive in the Ashes battle.
Nevertheless, the Kent batsman stated the messaging from the captain and coach McCullum had stayed in line with their prior tenure in leadership.
"The atmosphere has been extremely upbeat, the same as always," noted Crawley. "It's on maintaining positivity, play our way, with great liberty. We believed we could do an extraordinary feat entering this game."
The Hosts On the Verge of Historic Ashes Triumph
Crawley's dismissal on day four was part of a decisive triple-strike by Australian off-spinner Lyon.
Lyon's three wickets in 20 deliveries – he also bowled Brook and Stokes himself – meant the chasing side six down for 207 in pursuit of a daunting total of 435.
This means, Australia require four wickets on the final day to secure an unassailable 3-0 lead after three matches played.
A loss would prolong England's winless run in Australia to 18 Tests and condemn them to a fourth straight away Ashes series loss.
This series will be completed in just eleven days of cricket – with England fell the first two Tests in two and four days each.
The last time 1921, when Australia completed a series win in England in eight days, has the destination of the urn been determined more swiftly. The hosts have also triumphed in eleven days on two other occasions in the modern era.
"It's disappointing," admitted Crawley. "We came here to regain the Ashes and now we are staring down the barrel now."
"There remains significant pride at stake and we'll definitely view it like that," Crawley added.
"It's been difficult. They're a very, very good side. It was always going to be tough touring here against them. They were the front-runners coming in to it have demonstrated their quality."
Ollie Pope's Position In Question
While the opener's innings in Adelaide likely secures questions about his short-term place in the side, Ollie Pope looks under immense pressure for his position in the Melbourne Test starting December 26th.
Pope fell for 17 in England's second innings on day four, extending his poor record versus the old enemy.
In sixteen Ashes knocks, Pope has failed to score a fifty and averages 17.62.
A solitary other English batsman in over a century – Dennis Amiss – has played as many times in the top six in Ashes Tests and recorded a poorer average.
However, the opener insisted any notion his teammate is being scrutinised originates with "you guys" – referring to the press – "not inside the camp."
"We all know how good of a player he is," said Crawley. "Ollie has enjoyed a good year if I'm honest."
"He has played some really good knocks. It is talk from the outside. There's no chat like that regarding Pope in the camp," he concluded.
