England opener Zak Crawley suggested he had no knowledge of comments made by skipper Stokes about the team environment not being "weak men".
Stokes delivered those words in several conversations following his team's defeat in the second Ashes series versus the Australians earlier this month.
In the lead-up to the third Test, where England are staring at defeat at the earliest opportunity, Stokes noted he had let his message 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, following Crawley made a knock of 85 on the fourth day in the third Test, he stated: "I missed those remarks."
"I didn't see and wasn't really looking out for it. Our approach is to take anything stated in the media with some skepticism," he added.
Frank Discussions and Consistent Messaging
Stokes made the "weak men" comment after his side were beaten in the second Test to go two matches behind.
The team afterwards took a break to a Queensland resort in the gap between the second and third matches.
Before the Adelaide contest, Stokes said his players had held "raw" talks and he had asked them to "show a bit of dog" in their battle to stay in contention in the series.
Nevertheless, Crawley stated the messaging from Stokes and coach Brendon McCullum had remained consistent with their previous three years in charge.
"It's been extremely upbeat, the same as always," said the opener. "It's just trying to be optimistic, play our way, with great liberty. We believed we could do an extraordinary feat going into this Test."
The Hosts On the Verge of Rapid Ashes Triumph
Crawley's wicket late on Saturday was part of a decisive three-wicket burst by Australian off-spinner Nathan Lyon.
The spinner's three wickets in a short spell – including the wickets of Brook and Ben Stokes – meant the chasing side 207-6 in pursuit of a notional target of 435.
Consequently, the home team need four wickets on Sunday's final day to secure an insurmountable three-nil lead after three Tests.
A loss would prolong the English team's drought in Australia to 18 consecutive matches and ensure a fourth straight away Ashes loss.
This series will be completed in just eleven days of play – after England fell the initial matches in rapid time each.
The last time 1921, when the Australians completed a series win in England in eight days, has the outcome of the urn been decided so quickly. The hosts have also won in 11 days on two other instances in the modern era.
"It's disheartening," admitted Crawley. "Our goal was to regain the Ashes and now we are staring down the barrel now."
"There will still be plenty to play for and we'll certainly approach it with that mindset," he continued.
"The challenge has been difficult. Australia is a formidable side. It was always going to be tough coming here to face them. They entered as the front-runners and have demonstrated their quality."
Pope's Place Under Scrutiny
While the opener's performance in the third Test probably answers questions about his short-term place in the England team, Pope appears 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 knock on day four, adding to his modest returns versus Australia.
Across 16 Ashes innings, Pope has failed to score a fifty and boasts an average of 17.62.
Only one other English batsman in over a century – Amiss – has featured as many times in the top six in the Ashes and returned a poorer average.
But, the opener insisted any notion his teammate is being scrutinised comes from "you guys" – referring to the press – "and not within the team."
"The squad is fully aware of his considerable talent," said Crawley. "Ollie has enjoyed a productive year to be frank."
"He has produced several excellent innings. This is talk externally. There is no chat of that nature regarding Pope amongst the players," he finished.
