England opener Zak Crawley suggested he had no knowledge of statements from captain Stokes about the dressing room as no place for "those lacking fortitude".
The all-rounder made this message in several conversations in the wake of his team's defeat in the second Ashes versus Australia earlier this month.
Ahead of the Adelaide Test, where the visitors now face a series loss at the earliest opportunity, Stokes stated he had let his sentiment to "circulate freely" among the squad.
"I have completed all the talking over the past two days that I needed to have done," said the England leader.
However, following the opener made a knock of 85 on the penultimate day in the third Test, he stated: "I missed those remarks."
"I didn't see and wasn't really looking out for it. We take anything stated in the media with some skepticism," he added.
Frank Discussions and Steady Philosophy
The captain made the "fragile individuals" comment subsequent to England were beaten in the second Test to fall two matches behind.
The team subsequently took a break to Noosa in the gap between the second and the upcoming Tests.
Prior to the Adelaide contest, he said his team had held "raw" talks and he had asked them to "display some fight" in their battle to stay in contention in the series.
Nevertheless, Crawley stated the messaging from Stokes and head coach Brendon McCullum had remained consistent with their previous tenure in leadership.
"It's been very positive, unchanged," said the opener. "The focus is on maintaining positivity, playing our brand, with lots of freedom. We believed we could do an extraordinary feat going into this Test."
Australia Close of Historic Series Victory
Crawley's wicket late on Saturday came during a crucial triple-strike by Australia spinner Lyon.
The spinner's triple strike in a short spell – he also bowled Harry Brook and Ben Stokes – left the chasing side six down for 207 in pursuit of a notional total of 435.
This means, the home team need four wickets on the last day to move to an unassailable 3-0 lead after three Tests.
Defeat would prolong England's winless run in this country to 18 Tests and ensure a fourth successive overseas Ashes series loss.
This series is set to be decided in just eleven days of play – after England losing the initial matches in two and four days respectively.
Not since 1921, when the Australians completed a series win in the UK in eight days, has the outcome of the urn been determined more swiftly. Australia have also triumphed in eleven days on two other occasions in the 21st century.
"This is disappointing," said the batsman. "Our goal was to regain the Ashes and now we are staring down the barrel now."
"There remains plenty to play for and we will certainly approach it with that mindset," he continued.
"It's been tough. They're a formidable side. It was inevitably tough touring here to face them. They entered as the front-runners coming in to it have demonstrated their quality."
Pope's Position Under Scrutiny
Although the opener's innings in the third Test likely secures questions about his immediate future in the England team, Ollie Pope looks under threat for his spot in the Melbourne Test on Boxing Day.
Pope was out for 17 in the team's second innings on Saturday, extending his poor record against the old enemy.
Across sixteen Ashes knocks, the Surrey man has never made a fifty and boasts an average of 17.62.
Only one other English batsman since 1900 – Amiss – has played an equal number of innings in the top six in the Ashes and recorded a lower average.
However, Crawley said 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 good year if I'm honest."
"He has produced some really good knocks. It is talk from the outside. There's no discussion of that nature regarding Pope amongst the players," he concluded.
