England opener Zak Crawley has indicated he was not familiar with statements from captain Stokes regarding the team environment as no place for "weak men".
Stokes made this message in multiple interviews in the wake of England's loss in the second match of the Ashes versus the Australians previously.
Ahead of the Adelaide Test, where England now face a series loss with a match to spare, the captain stated he had let his message to "drift around" within the playing group.
"I've done the necessary discussions over the past two days that I required," said the England leader.
But, following Crawley scored 85 on the penultimate day in the third Test, he commented: "I missed those remarks."
"I wasn't actively searching for it. We take everything that is said in the media with a pinch of salt," he added.
Frank Discussions and Steady Philosophy
Stokes issued his "weak men" comment after England were beaten in Brisbane to fall two matches behind.
The team subsequently went on a break to Noosa in the gap between the second and the upcoming Tests.
Prior to this match, he revealed his players had held "raw" conversations and he had urged them to "show a bit of dog" in their effort to remain in contention in the series.
Nevertheless, the Kent batsman asserted the messaging from Stokes and head coach Brendon McCullum had remained in line with their previous three years in charge.
"It's been extremely upbeat, unchanged," said the opener. "The focus is on maintaining positivity, playing our brand, with great liberty. We believed we were capable of something special entering this game."
The Hosts On the Verge of Historic Ashes Triumph
The opener's wicket on day four was part of a decisive three-wicket burst by Australian off-spinner Nathan Lyon.
Lyon's triple strike in a short spell – including the wickets of Harry Brook and Ben Stokes – meant the chasing side 207-6 chasing a daunting target of 435.
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 will extend England's winless run in this country to 18 Tests and condemn them to a fourth successive away Ashes loss.
The current battle is set to be decided in only eleven days of cricket – after England losing the first two Tests in two and four days respectively.
Not since 1921, when Australia sealed victory in England in eight days, has the outcome of the Ashes urn been decided so quickly. Australia have also triumphed in eleven days on two other occasions in the 21st century.
"It's disheartening," said Crawley. "We came here to win the Ashes and we're facing elimination at this point."
"There remains significant pride at stake and we'll definitely view it with that mindset," he continued.
"It's been tough. Australia is a formidable team. It was inevitably tough touring here against them. They were the front-runners and have demonstrated their quality."
Ollie Pope's Place In Question
Although Crawley's performance in the third Test probably answers questions about his short-term place in the side, Pope looks under threat for his spot in the fourth Test starting December 26th.
The Surrey batsman fell for 17 runs in England's second innings on day four, extending his poor record versus Australia.
In sixteen Ashes knocks, the Surrey man has never made a half-century 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 poorer average.
But, Crawley insisted any notion his teammate is being scrutinised comes from "the media" – referring to the journalists – "not inside the camp."
"We all know of his considerable talent," added Crawley. "Ollie has enjoyed a good year if I'm honest."
"He has played some really good knocks. This is talk externally. There's no discussion of that nature on Ollie in the camp," Crawley concluded.
