England opening batter Zak Crawley suggested he was not familiar with statements from captain Stokes regarding the dressing room as no place for "those lacking fortitude".
The all-rounder made those words in multiple interviews following his team's loss in the second match of the Ashes series against Australia previously.
In the lead-up to the third Test, where the visitors are staring at a series loss at the earliest opportunity, Stokes noted he had let his sentiment to "circulate freely" among the squad.
"I have completed the necessary discussions in recent days that I needed to have done," said the England leader.
But, following Crawley scored 85 on the penultimate day in the third Test, he stated: "I missed those remarks."
"I wasn't actively searching for it. Our approach is to take everything that is said in the press with some skepticism," Crawley continued.
Frank Discussions and Consistent Messaging
Stokes made the "weak men" observation subsequent to his side suffered a loss in Brisbane to fall two matches behind.
The team subsequently went on a break to Noosa between the second and the upcoming matches.
Prior to this match, he said his team had held "honest" conversations and he had urged them to "display some fight" in their effort to remain alive in the Ashes battle.
Nevertheless, Crawley stated the messaging from the captain and coach McCullum had stayed in line with their prior three years in charge.
"The atmosphere has been very positive, the same as always," said Crawley. "It's just trying to be optimistic, playing our brand, with lots of freedom. We believed we were capable of an extraordinary feat going into this game."
Australia On the Verge of Rapid Series Victory
Crawley's dismissal on day four was part of a decisive triple-strike by Australian spinner Nathan Lyon.
Lyon's triple strike in 20 deliveries – including the wickets of Harry Brook and Stokes himself – left the chasing side six down for 207 in pursuit of a notional target of 435.
This means, Australia need just four more wickets on Sunday's final day to move to an insurmountable 3-0 advantage with three matches played.
A loss would prolong England's winless run in Australia to 18 Tests and ensure a fourth successive overseas Ashes loss.
The current battle will be completed in only 11 days of play – after England fell the initial matches in rapid time 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 disappointing," said 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 like that," Crawley added.
"It's been tough. They're a formidable team. It was always going to be hard coming here to face them. They entered as the favourites coming in to it have demonstrated their quality."
Pope's Place In Question
Although Crawley's innings in Adelaide likely secures doubts about his immediate place in the side, Pope appears under threat for his position in the fourth Test on Boxing Day.
The Surrey batsman was out for 17 in the team's second knock on Saturday, extending his poor record versus Australia.
Across 16 Ashes innings, the Surrey man has never made a half-century and boasts an average of 17.62.
A solitary other England player since 1900 – Dennis Amiss – has featured an equal number of innings in the top six in the Ashes and recorded a poorer average.
However, Crawley insisted any notion his teammate is under the microscope comes from "the media" – meaning the press – "not inside the camp."
"The squad is fully aware how good of a player he is," added he. "Ollie has enjoyed a good year if I'm honest."
"He has produced several excellent innings. It is talk externally. There is no discussion of that nature on Ollie amongst the players," Crawley finished.
