England opening batter Zak Crawley suggested he was not familiar with statements made by captain Stokes about the team environment as no place for "those lacking fortitude".
The all-rounder made those words in several interviews following England's loss in the second match of the Ashes series against the Australians previously.
In the lead-up to the third Test, where England now face defeat at the earliest opportunity, Stokes noted he had allowed his message to "drift around" among the playing group.
"I've done all the talking over the past two days that I needed to have done," remarked Stokes.
However, following the opener scored a knock of 85 on the fourth day in Adelaide, he stated: "I didn't see that."
"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," he added.
Raw Conversations and Consistent Messaging
The captain made the "weak men" observation after England were beaten in Brisbane to fall 2-0 down.
The England squad afterwards took a holiday to Noosa between the second and the upcoming Tests.
Prior to the Adelaide contest, he revealed his players had held "honest" conversations and he had urged them to "display some fight" in their effort to remain alive in the Ashes battle.
Yet, Crawley stated the messaging from the captain and coach McCullum had stayed consistent with their prior tenure in leadership.
"It's been very positive, unchanged," said the opener. "The focus is on maintaining positivity, play our way, with lots of freedom. We believed we could do an extraordinary feat entering this game."
The Hosts Close of Rapid Series Victory
Crawley's dismissal late on Saturday came during a decisive three-wicket burst by Australia spinner Nathan Lyon.
The spinner's triple strike in 20 deliveries – including the wickets of Brook and Ben Stokes – meant the chasing side 207-6 chasing a daunting total of 435.
Consequently, the home team require four wickets on Sunday's final day to secure an unassailable three-nil advantage with three matches played.
Defeat would prolong England's winless run in Australia to 18 consecutive matches and ensure a fourth successive away Ashes series defeat.
The current battle is set to be decided in just eleven days of play – after England fell the initial matches in rapid time respectively.
The last time 1921, when Australia completed victory in England in eight days, has the outcome of the urn been decided more swiftly. The hosts have also triumphed in 11 days on two other occasions in the 21st century.
"It's disappointing," admitted Crawley. "Our goal was to win the Ashes and we're facing elimination now."
"There will still be plenty to play for and we'll definitely view it like that," Crawley added.
"The challenge has been difficult. Australia is a very, very good side. It was inevitably hard coming here to face them. They were the front-runners coming in to it have demonstrated their quality."
Ollie Pope's Place In Question
Although the opener's performance in the third Test probably answers questions about his immediate place in the side, Ollie Pope looks under immense pressure for his position in the Melbourne Test starting December 26th.
The Surrey batsman fell for 17 in the team's second knock on day four, adding to his poor record against Australia.
In 16 Ashes innings, the Surrey man has failed to score a fifty and boasts an average of just 17.62.
A solitary other English batsman since 1900 – Amiss – has played an equal number of innings in the top order in the Ashes and recorded a poorer average.
But, Crawley insisted any suggestion Pope is being scrutinised comes from "you guys" – meaning the press – "and not within the team."
"The squad is fully aware how good of a player he is," added he. "He has had a productive year if I'm honest."
"He has produced some really good knocks. It is noise from the outside. There's no chat of that nature on Ollie in the camp," he finished.
