The English opening batter Zak Crawley has indicated he was not familiar with comments from captain Stokes about the dressing room as no place for "weak men".
Stokes delivered this message in multiple interviews following England's loss in the second match of the Ashes series against the Australians earlier this month.
Ahead of the Adelaide Test, where England now face a series loss with a match to spare, Stokes noted he had let his sentiment to "drift around" within the playing group.
"I've done the necessary discussions over the past two days that I needed to have done," said the England leader.
However, following Crawley scored a knock of 85 on the penultimate day in the third Test, he stated: "I didn't see that."
"I didn't see and wasn't really looking out for it. We take anything stated in the media with some skepticism," Crawley continued.
Frank Discussions and Steady Philosophy
Stokes made the "weak men" observation after England were beaten in the second Test to fall two matches behind.
The England squad afterwards took a holiday to a Queensland resort between the second and third matches.
Prior to the Adelaide contest, Stokes said his team had held "honest" talks and he had urged them to "display some fight" in their effort to stay in contention in the Ashes battle.
Yet, Crawley asserted the guidance from the captain and coach Brendon McCullum had stayed consistent with their prior tenure in charge.
"It's been very positive, the same as always," noted Crawley. "The focus is on maintaining positivity, playing our brand, with great liberty. We believed we were capable of something special going into this Test."
The Hosts On the Verge of Rapid Ashes Triumph
The opener's dismissal late on Saturday was part of a decisive three-wicket burst by Australia off-spinner Nathan Lyon.
Lyon's triple strike in 20 deliveries – he also bowled Harry Brook and Stokes himself – left England six down for 207 in pursuit of a daunting target of 435.
Consequently, the home team require four wickets on Sunday's last day to move to an insurmountable three-nil lead with three matches played.
Defeat would prolong the English team's drought in Australia to 18 consecutive matches and condemn them to a fourth successive overseas Ashes defeat.
The current battle is set to be decided in just 11 days of cricket – with England fell the first two Tests in two and four days respectively.
The last time 1921, when Australia sealed a series win in the UK in eight days, has the destination of the urn been decided more swiftly. The hosts have also won in 11 days on two other instances 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 will still be plenty to play for and we'll certainly approach it with that mindset," he continued.
"The challenge has been tough. They're a very, very good team. It was inevitably hard touring here against them. They entered as the favourites coming in to it they've proven why."
Pope's Position Under Scrutiny
Although Crawley's performance in the third Test likely secures questions about his short-term future in the side, Ollie Pope appears under threat for his spot in the fourth Test on Boxing Day.
Pope fell for 17 runs in the team's second innings on day four, extending his modest returns versus the old enemy.
In sixteen Ashes knocks, the Surrey man has never made a fifty and averages 17.62.
Only one other English batsman since 1900 – Dennis Amiss – has featured an equal number of innings in the top six in Ashes Tests and returned a lower average.
But, Crawley insisted any notion his teammate is under the microscope comes from "the media" – referring to the journalists – "and not within the team."
"The squad is fully aware of his considerable talent," said Crawley. "He has had a productive year to be frank."
"He has played several excellent innings. This is noise from the outside. There's no chat like that on Ollie amongst the players," he concluded.
