The English opener Zak Crawley has indicated he was not familiar with statements made by captain Stokes regarding the team environment as no place for "those lacking fortitude".
Stokes delivered those words in several conversations in the wake of his team's loss in the second Ashes versus the Australians earlier this month.
Ahead of the third Test, where England are staring at a series loss with a match to spare, the captain noted he had allowed his sentiment to "drift around" within the squad.
"I have completed all the talking in recent days that I required," said Stokes.
However, following Crawley scored 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. Our approach is to take everything that is said in the media with a pinch of salt," he added.
Frank Discussions and Steady Philosophy
Stokes made the "fragile individuals" observation subsequent to England suffered a loss in the second Test to go 2-0 down.
The team afterwards went on a break to a Queensland resort in the gap between the second and third matches.
Prior to the Adelaide contest, Stokes said his players had held "honest" talks and he had asked them to "display some fight" in their effort to stay in contention in the Ashes battle.
Yet, Crawley asserted the guidance from the captain and head coach Brendon McCullum had stayed in line with their previous tenure in leadership.
"The atmosphere has been very positive, the same as always," said Crawley. "It's just trying to be optimistic, play our way, with great liberty. We believed we were capable of something special going into this game."
The Hosts On the Verge of Historic Ashes Triumph
Crawley's wicket on day four was part of a crucial triple-strike by Australian off-spinner Lyon.
Lyon's triple strike in 20 deliveries – including the wickets of Brook and Ben Stokes – meant England six down for 207 chasing a notional total of 435.
Consequently, Australia require just four more wickets on the last day to move to an unassailable 3-0 advantage after three matches played.
A loss would prolong the English team's winless run in this country to 18 Tests and condemn them to a fourth straight overseas Ashes loss.
The current battle will be completed in only eleven days of cricket – with England losing the first two Tests in rapid time each.
The last time 1921, when the Australians completed victory in the UK in eight days, has the outcome of the urn been decided more swiftly. The hosts have also won in eleven days on two other instances in the modern era.
"It's disheartening," said the batsman. "Our goal was to win the Ashes and we're facing elimination now."
"There will still be significant pride at stake and we will certainly approach it like that," he continued.
"It's been difficult. They're a formidable team. It was inevitably tough touring here to face them. They were the front-runners and they've proven why."
Ollie Pope's Place In Question
Although the opener's performance in the third Test likely secures questions about his short-term place in the side, Ollie Pope appears under threat for his position in the Melbourne Test on Boxing Day.
The Surrey batsman was out for 17 in the team's second knock on Saturday, adding to his poor record versus the old enemy.
Across 16 Ashes innings, Pope has never made a fifty and averages just 17.62.
Only one other English batsman in over a century – Dennis Amiss – has played an equal number of innings in the top six in the Ashes and recorded a lower average.
However, the opener insisted any notion Pope is under the microscope comes from "the media" – referring to the journalists – "and not within the team."
"We all know of his considerable talent," added he. "He has had a productive year if I'm honest."
"He has played some really good knocks. This is noise externally. There's no chat of that nature regarding Pope amongst the players," Crawley concluded.
