The English opening batter Zak Crawley has indicated he had no knowledge of comments made by skipper Stokes regarding the dressing room as no place for "those lacking fortitude".
Stokes made those words in multiple interviews following England's loss in the second Ashes versus the Australians earlier this month.
In the lead-up to the third Test, where the visitors now face a series loss at the earliest opportunity, Stokes stated he had let his sentiment to "circulate freely" among the playing group.
"I have completed the necessary discussions in recent days that I needed to have done," remarked the England leader.
However, after Crawley scored a knock of 85 on the penultimate day in the third Test, he stated: "I didn't see that."
"I wasn't actively searching for it. Our approach is to take everything that is said in the media with a pinch of salt," Crawley continued.
Frank Discussions and Consistent Messaging
The captain made the "weak men" observation subsequent to his side suffered a loss in Brisbane to go 2-0 down.
The team afterwards went on a break to Noosa in the gap between the second and the upcoming Tests.
Before the Adelaide contest, he said his players had held "raw" talks and he had urged them to "show a bit of dog" in their battle to remain alive in the Ashes battle.
Yet, the Kent batsman stated the guidance from Stokes and coach McCullum had remained consistent with their prior three years in charge.
"It's been very positive, unchanged," noted the opener. "The focus is just trying to be optimistic, playing our brand, with lots of freedom. We believed we could do an extraordinary feat entering this Test."
The Hosts Close of Historic Ashes Triumph
Crawley's dismissal late on Saturday came during a crucial triple-strike by Australian off-spinner Lyon.
Lyon's three wickets in 20 deliveries – including the wickets of Brook and Stokes himself – meant the chasing side 207-6 in pursuit of a notional total of 435 runs.
This means, the home team need four wickets on the last day to secure an unassailable three-nil lead with three matches played.
Defeat will extend the English team's drought in Australia to 18 Tests and condemn them to a fourth straight away 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 respectively.
The last time 1921, when the Australians completed victory in the UK in eight days, has the destination of the Ashes urn been decided more swiftly. The hosts have also won in 11 days on two other instances in the modern era.
"This is disheartening," said the batsman. "Our goal was to win the Ashes and we're facing elimination now."
"There will still be plenty to play for and we will definitely view it with that mindset," he continued.
"It's been tough. Australia is a very, very good side. It was always going to be tough touring here against them. They entered as the front-runners coming in to it they've proven why."
Ollie Pope's Place In Question
Although Crawley's innings in the third Test probably answers doubts about his short-term place in the side, Ollie Pope looks under threat for his spot in the Melbourne Test starting December 26th.
The Surrey batsman was out for 17 runs in the team'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 just 17.62.
Only one other England player in over a century – Dennis Amiss – has featured as many times in the top order in the Ashes and returned a poorer average.
However, the opener insisted any suggestion his teammate is under the microscope comes from "the media" – meaning the press – "and not within the team."
"We all know how good of a player he is," added Crawley. "He has had a good year to be frank."
"He has produced some really good knocks. It is talk from the outside. There's no discussion like that on Ollie amongst the players," he finished.
