The English opening batter Zak Crawley has indicated he had no knowledge of comments made by captain Stokes regarding the dressing room as no place for "weak men".
The all-rounder made this message in several interviews following England's defeat in the second match of the Ashes against the Australians previously.
Ahead of the third Test, where England now face a series loss at the earliest opportunity, the captain noted he had let his message to "circulate freely" among the playing group.
"I've done all the talking over the past two days that I needed to have done," remarked the England leader.
However, after Crawley scored a knock of 85 on the penultimate day in the third Test, he commented: "I didn't see that."
"I wasn't actively searching for it. We take everything that is said in the media with a pinch of salt," Crawley continued.
Frank Discussions and Consistent Messaging
Stokes made the "weak men" observation after his side were beaten in the second Test to fall two matches behind.
The team afterwards took a break to Noosa between the second and third Tests.
Prior to the Adelaide contest, he said his team had held "honest" conversations and he had urged them to "display some fight" in their battle to remain in contention in the series.
Yet, Crawley stated the messaging from Stokes and coach McCullum had remained consistent with their prior three years in charge.
"The atmosphere has been extremely upbeat, unchanged," noted the opener. "It's on maintaining positivity, play our way, with lots of freedom. We believed we could do an extraordinary feat entering this game."
Australia Close of Rapid Series Victory
The opener's wicket on day four came during a crucial triple-strike by Australia off-spinner Nathan Lyon.
Lyon's triple strike in 20 deliveries – including the wickets of Brook and Ben Stokes – left the chasing side 207-6 chasing a daunting total of 435 runs.
This means, the home team need just four more wickets on the last day to move to an insurmountable three-nil lead after three Tests.
A loss would prolong the English team's winless run in this country to 18 consecutive matches and ensure a fourth successive away Ashes loss.
The current battle is set to be decided in just eleven days of play – with England losing the initial matches in two and four days respectively.
The last time 1921, when Australia completed a series win in England in eight days, has the destination of the Ashes urn been determined 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 we're facing elimination now."
"There will still be significant pride at stake and we will certainly approach it with that mindset," Crawley added.
"The challenge has been difficult. They're a formidable team. It was inevitably tough coming here against them. They were the front-runners and have demonstrated their quality."
Pope's Position In Question
Although Crawley's performance in the third Test probably answers questions about his short-term future in the side, Pope looks under immense pressure for his spot in the fourth Test on Boxing Day.
Pope was out for 17 in England's second innings on day four, adding to his modest returns versus the old enemy.
Across sixteen Ashes knocks, Pope has failed to score a half-century and averages just 17.62.
A solitary other England player in over a century – Dennis Amiss – has featured an equal number of innings in the top six in Ashes Tests and returned a poorer average.
But, Crawley insisted any suggestion his teammate is under the microscope comes from "the media" – meaning the journalists – "and not within the team."
"The squad is fully aware of his considerable talent," added he. "He has had a good year if I'm honest."
"He has produced several excellent innings. It is talk from the outside. There's no chat like that on Ollie in the camp," Crawley concluded.
