England opening batter Zak Crawley suggested he was not familiar with comments made by captain Stokes regarding the team environment not being "those lacking fortitude".
Stokes delivered those words in multiple conversations in the wake of England's defeat in the second Ashes series against Australia earlier this month.
In the lead-up to the third Test, where the visitors now face a series loss at the earliest opportunity, Stokes noted he had let his message to "drift around" among the playing group.
"I have completed the necessary discussions over the past two days that I needed to have done," said the England leader.
However, after the opener made 85 on the fourth day in the third Test, he stated: "I missed those remarks."
"I wasn't actively searching for it. Our approach is to take anything stated in the press with some skepticism," he added.
Raw Conversations and Steady Philosophy
The captain made the "weak men" observation after his side were beaten in Brisbane to go 2-0 down.
The England squad subsequently went on a holiday to Noosa in the gap between the second and the upcoming Tests.
Before this match, Stokes said his team had held "raw" talks and he had urged them to "show a bit of dog" in their effort to stay in contention in the Ashes battle.
Nevertheless, the Kent batsman asserted the guidance from the captain and head coach Brendon McCullum had stayed in line with their prior tenure in charge.
"The atmosphere has been very positive, the same as always," noted Crawley. "It's just trying to be optimistic, playing our brand, with great liberty. It felt like we could do something special going into this game."
Australia Close of Rapid Series Victory
The opener's wicket late on Saturday was part of a decisive triple-strike by Australia off-spinner Lyon.
The spinner's three wickets in 20 deliveries – including the wickets of Brook and Ben Stokes – left England 207-6 in pursuit of a notional target of 435 runs.
Consequently, the home team require four wickets on the final day to secure an insurmountable three-nil advantage after three matches played.
Defeat will extend England's winless run in this country to 18 Tests and condemn them to a fourth successive away Ashes defeat.
This series is set to be decided in only 11 days of play – with England fell the initial matches in rapid time respectively.
The last time 1921, when the Australians sealed a series win in England in eight days, has the outcome of the Ashes urn been decided more swiftly. The hosts have also won in 11 days on two other instances in the modern era.
"It's disappointing," said Crawley. "We came here to win the Ashes and we're facing elimination at this point."
"There will still be plenty to play for and we'll certainly approach it with that mindset," he continued.
"The challenge has been tough. Australia is a very, very good team. It was always going to be hard touring here to face them. They were the favourites coming in to it have demonstrated their quality."
Ollie Pope's Place In Question
Although Crawley's innings in the third Test probably answers doubts about his immediate place in the England team, Ollie Pope appears under threat for his spot in the fourth Test on Boxing Day.
The Surrey batsman fell for 17 in England's second innings on Saturday, adding to his poor record against Australia.
In 16 Ashes innings, the Surrey man has never made a half-century and boasts an average of 17.62.
A solitary other English batsman in over a century – Dennis Amiss – has played an equal number of innings in the top order in Ashes Tests and returned a lower average.
But, Crawley insisted any suggestion his teammate is being scrutinised originates with "you guys" – referring to the press – "not inside the camp."
"The squad is fully aware of his considerable talent," added he. "He has had a good year if I'm honest."
"He has played several excellent innings. It is talk from the outside. There's no chat of that nature regarding Pope amongst the players," he finished.
