England opener Zak Crawley suggested he had no knowledge of statements made by captain Stokes about the dressing room as no place for "those lacking fortitude".
The all-rounder made those words in several conversations following his team's loss in the second Ashes versus the Australians earlier this month.
Ahead of the Adelaide Test, where the visitors are staring at a series loss with a match to spare, Stokes stated he had let his sentiment to "circulate freely" within the playing group.
"I have completed all the talking over the past two days that I needed to have done," remarked Stokes.
But, after Crawley scored a knock of 85 on the fourth day in Adelaide, he stated: "I didn't see that."
"I wasn't actively searching for it. We take anything stated in the media with some skepticism," he added.
Raw Conversations and Consistent Messaging
The captain issued his "weak men" observation after England suffered a loss in Brisbane to fall 2-0 down.
The team subsequently took a holiday to a Queensland resort in the gap between the second and the upcoming matches.
Prior to the Adelaide contest, Stokes said his team had held "honest" conversations and he had urged them to "display some fight" in their effort to stay in contention in the Ashes battle.
Nevertheless, the Kent batsman stated the guidance from Stokes and coach Brendon McCullum had remained consistent with their prior three years in charge.
"It's been very positive, unchanged," noted Crawley. "It's just trying to be optimistic, play our way, with lots of freedom. We believed we could do an extraordinary feat entering this Test."
Australia On the Verge of Historic Series Victory
The opener's wicket late on Saturday came during a crucial triple-strike by Australia spinner Nathan Lyon.
Lyon's three wickets in a short spell – including the wickets of Brook and Ben Stokes – meant the chasing side six down for 207 chasing a daunting target of 435 runs.
This means, the home team require four wickets on Sunday's last day to move to an unassailable 3-0 advantage after three Tests.
Defeat would prolong the English team's drought in this country to 18 Tests and ensure a fourth successive away Ashes loss.
This series is set to be decided in just 11 days of play – with England fell the first two Tests in two and four days each.
The last time 1921, when the Australians completed a series win in the UK in eight days, has the outcome of the Ashes urn been determined more swiftly. The hosts have also triumphed in 11 days on two other occasions in the modern era.
"This is disheartening," said Crawley. "Our goal was to win the Ashes and we're facing elimination now."
"There will still be significant pride at stake and we'll definitely view it like that," he continued.
"The challenge has been difficult. Australia is a formidable team. It was always going to be hard touring here against them. They entered as the front-runners coming in to it they've proven why."
Pope's Place Under Scrutiny
Although Crawley's performance in the third Test likely secures doubts about his immediate place in the side, Ollie Pope looks under threat for his spot in the Melbourne Test on Boxing Day.
The Surrey batsman was out for 17 runs in the team's second knock on day four, extending his poor record versus the old enemy.
Across 16 Ashes innings, the Surrey man has never made a fifty and averages just 17.62.
Only one other English batsman in over a century – Amiss – has featured as many times in the top order in the Ashes and recorded a poorer average.
But, the opener said any suggestion his teammate is under the microscope originates with "you guys" – meaning the journalists – "and not within the team."
"The squad is fully aware of his considerable talent," added Crawley. "Ollie has enjoyed a productive year if I'm honest."
"He has produced some really good knocks. It is noise externally. There's no discussion like that on Ollie in the camp," Crawley concluded.
