England opening batter Zak Crawley suggested he was not familiar with statements from skipper Stokes regarding the dressing room not being "weak men".
The all-rounder made those words in several conversations following his team's defeat in the second match of the Ashes series against Australia previously.
Ahead of the third Test, where England now face a series loss at the earliest opportunity, the captain stated he had allowed his message to "circulate freely" among the playing group.
"I have completed all the talking in recent days that I needed to have done," said Stokes.
But, following Crawley made a knock of 85 on the penultimate day in Adelaide, he commented: "I missed those remarks."
"I didn't see and wasn't really looking out for it. We take anything stated in the press with some skepticism," he added.
Frank Discussions and Consistent Messaging
The captain made the "fragile individuals" comment subsequent to England were beaten in the second Test to fall two matches behind.
The England squad afterwards went on a holiday to Noosa between the second and third matches.
Prior to this match, Stokes revealed his players had held "raw" talks and he had urged them to "show a bit of dog" in their battle to remain in contention in the Ashes battle.
Yet, the Kent batsman asserted the messaging from the captain and head coach McCullum had stayed consistent with their previous tenure in leadership.
"The atmosphere has been extremely upbeat, unchanged," said the opener. "The focus is on maintaining positivity, play our way, with great liberty. We believed we could do something special going into this Test."
Australia Close of Historic Series Victory
Crawley's dismissal late on Saturday came during a crucial triple-strike by Australian spinner Lyon.
The spinner's three wickets in 20 deliveries – including the wickets of Harry Brook and Stokes himself – meant the chasing side 207-6 in pursuit of a daunting total of 435.
This means, Australia require four wickets on the final day to secure an unassailable three-nil advantage after three Tests.
Defeat would prolong the English team's winless run in this country to 18 consecutive matches and ensure a fourth straight away Ashes series defeat.
This series will be completed in only eleven days of play – with England losing the initial matches in two and four days respectively.
Not since 1921, when the Australians completed a series win in England in eight days, has the outcome of the urn been determined more swiftly. The hosts have also triumphed in eleven days on two other instances in the modern era.
"This is disappointing," admitted Crawley. "We came here to regain the Ashes and now we are facing elimination at this point."
"There remains plenty to play for and we will definitely view it like that," he continued.
"It's been tough. Australia is a very, very good team. It was inevitably tough coming here against them. They were the front-runners coming in to it they've proven why."
Ollie Pope's Position Under Scrutiny
While the opener's innings in the third Test likely secures doubts about his short-term future in the England team, Ollie Pope looks under immense pressure for his spot in the Melbourne Test starting December 26th.
Pope fell for 17 in England's second innings on day four, adding to his modest returns against Australia.
Across sixteen Ashes knocks, the Surrey man has never made a half-century and averages 17.62.
A solitary other England player since 1900 – Dennis Amiss – has played an equal number of innings in the top order in the Ashes and returned a lower average.
But, the opener insisted any notion his teammate is under the microscope originates with "you guys" – referring to the press – "and not within the team."
"We all know how good of a player he is," said he. "Ollie has enjoyed a productive year if I'm honest."
"He has played several excellent innings. This is talk externally. There's no discussion like that regarding Pope in the camp," Crawley concluded.
