The English opener Zak Crawley has indicated he was not familiar with comments from captain Stokes regarding the team environment as no place for "weak men".
The all-rounder delivered those words in several conversations in the wake of his team's defeat in the second Ashes versus Australia previously.
In the lead-up to the third Test, where England now face defeat at the earliest opportunity, the captain stated he had let his sentiment to "circulate freely" among the playing group.
"I have completed the necessary discussions over the past two days that I required," remarked the England leader.
But, after the opener scored 85 on the fourth day in Adelaide, he stated: "I missed those remarks."
"I wasn't actively searching for it. We take anything stated in the media with a pinch of salt," he added.
Frank Discussions and Consistent Messaging
Stokes made the "weak men" observation after his side suffered a loss in Brisbane to go 2-0 down.
The England squad subsequently took a holiday to Noosa in the gap between the second and third Tests.
Before the Adelaide contest, Stokes said his players had held "raw" talks and he had urged them to "show a bit of dog" in their effort to stay in contention in the series.
Nevertheless, the Kent batsman stated the messaging from the captain and head coach McCullum had remained consistent with their previous tenure in leadership.
"It's been very positive, unchanged," noted the opener. "It's just trying to be optimistic, play our way, with great liberty. We believed we could do something special going into this Test."
Australia Close of Historic Series Victory
Crawley's wicket late on Saturday came during a crucial triple-strike by Australia off-spinner Lyon.
The spinner's triple strike in 20 deliveries – he also bowled Harry Brook and Ben Stokes – left England six down for 207 in pursuit of a daunting total of 435.
This means, the home team require just four more wickets on Sunday's last day to secure an unassailable 3-0 advantage with three Tests.
A loss would prolong England's winless run in Australia to 18 consecutive matches and condemn them to a fourth straight away Ashes series defeat.
The current battle will be completed in just 11 days of cricket – with England losing the initial matches in rapid time respectively.
The last time 1921, when Australia sealed victory in England in eight days, has the destination of the Ashes urn been decided so quickly. Australia have also won in 11 days on two other instances in the modern era.
"It's disappointing," said the batsman. "Our goal was to regain the Ashes and now we are facing elimination at this point."
"There will still be plenty to play for and we'll definitely view it like that," he continued.
"It's been difficult. Australia is a formidable side. It was always going to be hard touring here against them. They were the front-runners and they've proven why."
Pope's Place Under Scrutiny
Although the opener's innings in the third Test probably answers questions about his short-term place in the side, Ollie Pope appears under threat for his spot in the Melbourne Test on Boxing Day.
Pope 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 half-century and boasts an average of just 17.62.
A solitary other English batsman in over a century – Amiss – has played an equal number of innings in the top six in Ashes Tests and recorded a poorer average.
However, the opener insisted any notion his teammate is being scrutinised originates with "you guys" – meaning the press – "and not within the team."
"We all know of his considerable talent," added Crawley. "Ollie has enjoyed a productive year if I'm honest."
"He has played several excellent innings. This is talk from the outside. There's no chat of that nature regarding Pope amongst the players," Crawley finished.
