The English opening batter Zak Crawley suggested he was not familiar with comments made by captain Stokes about the dressing room as no place for "weak men".
The all-rounder delivered those words in several conversations following his team's loss in the second match of the Ashes series against the Australians previously.
In the lead-up to the Adelaide Test, where England are staring at a series loss at the earliest opportunity, Stokes 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 required," remarked the England leader.
However, following the opener made 85 on the penultimate day in Adelaide, he commented: "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 some skepticism," Crawley continued.
Raw Conversations and Consistent Messaging
The captain made the "weak men" observation after England were beaten in Brisbane to go 2-0 down.
The England squad subsequently went on a break to a Queensland resort between the second and third Tests.
Prior to this match, he revealed his players had held "honest" conversations and he had asked them to "show a bit of dog" in their battle to stay alive in the series.
Nevertheless, the Kent batsman stated the guidance from the captain and head coach Brendon McCullum had stayed in line with their previous three years in leadership.
"The atmosphere has been extremely upbeat, the same as always," noted Crawley. "The focus is just trying to be optimistic, play our way, with great liberty. We believed we were capable of something special entering this Test."
The Hosts On the Verge of Historic Series Victory
The opener's dismissal late on Saturday was part of a crucial three-wicket burst by Australia off-spinner Lyon.
The spinner's triple strike in 20 deliveries – including the wickets of Harry Brook and Ben Stokes – left the chasing side six down for 207 in pursuit of a notional target of 435.
This means, the home team need just four more wickets on the last day to move to an unassailable three-nil advantage after three Tests.
A loss would prolong England's winless run in Australia to 18 Tests and condemn them to a fourth successive overseas Ashes series loss.
The current battle is set to be decided in only 11 days of play – after England fell the first two Tests in two and four days each.
Not since 1921, when Australia sealed victory in England in eight days, has the destination of the Ashes urn been decided so quickly. Australia have also triumphed in 11 days on two other occasions in the 21st century.
"It's disheartening," said Crawley. "Our goal was to win the Ashes and we're facing elimination at this point."
"There will still be significant pride at stake and we will definitely view it with that mindset," Crawley added.
"The challenge has been tough. They're a formidable side. It was always going to be hard coming here to face them. They were the front-runners and have demonstrated their quality."
Ollie Pope's Position In Question
Although the opener's performance in Adelaide probably answers questions about his immediate future in the side, Pope appears under immense pressure for his spot in the fourth Test on Boxing Day.
The Surrey batsman fell for 17 in England's second innings on day four, extending his modest returns against the old enemy.
In 16 Ashes innings, Pope has failed to score a half-century and boasts an average of 17.62.
Only one other English batsman since 1900 – Dennis Amiss – has featured as many times in the top order in Ashes Tests and recorded a lower average.
However, Crawley said any notion his teammate is under the microscope comes from "you guys" – referring to the press – "and not within the team."
"We all know how good of a player he is," added he. "Ollie has enjoyed a productive year if I'm honest."
"He has produced several excellent innings. This is noise externally. There is no discussion of that nature regarding Pope in the camp," he finished.
