England opener Zak Crawley suggested he had no knowledge of comments from captain Stokes regarding the team environment not being "weak men".
The all-rounder delivered this message in several interviews following his team's loss in the second Ashes series against the Australians earlier this month.
In the lead-up to the third Test, where England now face a series loss with a match to spare, the captain noted he had let his sentiment to "drift around" among the playing group.
"I've done all the talking over the past two days that I required," remarked Stokes.
However, after the opener scored 85 on the fourth day in Adelaide, he stated: "I didn't see that."
"I didn't see and wasn't really looking out for it. We take everything that is said in the press with a pinch of salt," Crawley continued.
Raw Conversations and Steady Philosophy
The captain 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 Noosa between the second and the upcoming Tests.
Before the Adelaide contest, Stokes said his team had held "raw" talks and he had asked them to "show a bit of dog" in their battle to remain alive in the Ashes battle.
Yet, Crawley asserted the guidance from Stokes and head coach Brendon McCullum had stayed consistent with their previous tenure in charge.
"It's been extremely upbeat, the same as always," said Crawley. "It's just trying to be optimistic, play our way, with lots of freedom. It felt like we could do something special entering this game."
Australia Close of Historic Series Victory
Crawley's dismissal late on Saturday was part of a decisive three-wicket burst by Australia spinner Lyon.
The spinner's triple strike in 20 deliveries – including the wickets of Brook and Ben Stokes – meant England 207-6 chasing a daunting total of 435 runs.
This means, the home team need just four more wickets on Sunday's final day to move to an insurmountable 3-0 advantage with three matches played.
Defeat would prolong the English team's drought in Australia to 18 consecutive matches and condemn them to a fourth successive overseas Ashes series defeat.
The current battle will be completed in only eleven days of cricket – with England fell the initial matches in rapid time respectively.
The last time 1921, when Australia sealed a series win in England in eight days, has the destination of the urn been decided more swiftly. Australia have also won in 11 days on two other instances in the modern era.
"It's disheartening," said the batsman. "Our goal was to win the Ashes and now we are staring down the barrel at this point."
"There will still be significant pride at stake and we will definitely view it with that mindset," he continued.
"The challenge has been difficult. They're a formidable side. It was always going to be tough touring here to face them. They were the favourites coming in to it they've proven why."
Ollie Pope's Position Under Scrutiny
While the opener's innings in the third Test probably answers doubts about his immediate future in the side, Ollie Pope looks under immense pressure for his position in the fourth Test on Boxing Day.
Pope fell for 17 in England's second innings on Saturday, extending his poor record versus the old enemy.
Across sixteen Ashes knocks, Pope has never made a half-century and boasts an average of 17.62.
Only one other English batsman since 1900 – Amiss – has featured an equal number of innings in the top order in Ashes Tests and returned a poorer average.
But, the opener said any notion his teammate is under the microscope comes from "you guys" – referring to the journalists – "not inside the camp."
"We all know how good of a player he is," added he. "Ollie has enjoyed a productive year to be frank."
"He has played some really good knocks. It is noise from the outside. There's no chat of that nature on Ollie in the camp," Crawley finished.
