England opener Zak Crawley suggested he had no knowledge of statements made by captain Stokes regarding the team environment as no place for "weak men".
The all-rounder delivered those words in multiple conversations in the wake of England's loss in the second match of the Ashes series against the Australians earlier this month.
In the lead-up to the Adelaide Test, where the visitors are staring at a series loss at the earliest opportunity, Stokes stated he had let his sentiment to "circulate freely" within the squad.
"I have completed the necessary discussions in recent days that I required," said the England leader.
However, following Crawley scored 85 on the fourth day in Adelaide, he commented: "I missed those remarks."
"I didn't see and wasn't really looking out for it. Our approach is to take everything that is said in the media with some skepticism," Crawley continued.
Raw Conversations and Consistent Messaging
Stokes issued his "fragile individuals" comment subsequent to his side suffered a loss in Brisbane to fall 2-0 down.
The team afterwards went on a break to Noosa between the second and the upcoming matches.
Prior to the Adelaide contest, Stokes revealed his players had held "honest" talks and he had urged them to "display some fight" in their effort to remain in contention in the series.
Yet, the Kent batsman asserted the guidance from Stokes and coach Brendon McCullum had stayed consistent with their prior tenure in charge.
"It's been extremely upbeat, unchanged," noted the opener. "The focus is just trying to be optimistic, playing our brand, with lots of freedom. It felt like we were capable of something special going into this Test."
Australia On the Verge of Historic Ashes Triumph
Crawley's wicket late on Saturday was part of a decisive three-wicket burst by Australian spinner Nathan Lyon.
Lyon's three wickets in a short spell – including the wickets of Brook and Ben Stokes – left the chasing side six down for 207 chasing a daunting target of 435.
Consequently, Australia need just four more wickets on the final day to move to an insurmountable 3-0 advantage after three Tests.
Defeat will extend England's winless run in Australia to 18 consecutive matches and ensure a fourth successive away Ashes defeat.
The current battle will be completed in only 11 days of play – with England fell the first two Tests in two and four days each.
The last time 1921, when Australia completed victory in the UK in eight days, has the destination of the Ashes urn been determined so quickly. The hosts have also triumphed in 11 days on two other occasions in the 21st century.
"It's disappointing," admitted the batsman. "Our goal was to regain the Ashes and now we are facing elimination at this point."
"There remains significant pride at stake and we will definitely view it like that," he continued.
"The challenge has been tough. Australia is a very, very good side. It was inevitably hard coming here to face them. They entered as the front-runners and have demonstrated their quality."
Pope's Place Under Scrutiny
Although the opener's innings in Adelaide likely secures questions about his short-term future in the side, Ollie Pope appears under threat for his spot in the fourth Test starting December 26th.
The Surrey batsman fell for 17 in England's second innings on Saturday, extending his modest returns versus the old enemy.
Across sixteen Ashes knocks, the Surrey man has failed to score a fifty and averages just 17.62.
A solitary other England player since 1900 – Dennis Amiss – has featured as many times in the top order in Ashes Tests and recorded a poorer average.
However, Crawley insisted any notion his teammate is being scrutinised comes from "the media" – referring to the journalists – "not inside the camp."
"We all know of his considerable talent," said he. "Ollie has enjoyed a productive year to be frank."
"He has played some really good knocks. It is noise externally. There is no chat of that nature regarding Pope in the camp," he concluded.
