The English opener Zak Crawley suggested he had no knowledge of comments made by captain Stokes about the team environment as no place for "weak men".
The all-rounder made those words in several conversations following his team's loss in the second match of the Ashes series versus Australia earlier this month.
Ahead of the Adelaide Test, where the visitors now face a series loss at the earliest opportunity, the captain noted he had let his sentiment to "circulate freely" within the playing group.
"I have completed the necessary discussions in recent days that I needed to have done," said the England leader.
But, after Crawley made 85 on the fourth day in Adelaide, he commented: "I missed those remarks."
"I didn't see and wasn't really looking out for it. We take anything stated in the press with some skepticism," Crawley continued.
Raw Conversations and Consistent Messaging
The captain made the "fragile individuals" observation after England were beaten in the second Test to go two matches behind.
The team afterwards went on a break to Noosa in the gap between the second and the upcoming matches.
Before this match, he revealed his players had held "raw" conversations and he had urged them to "show a bit of dog" in their battle to remain in contention in the Ashes battle.
Yet, Crawley stated the messaging from the captain and head coach Brendon McCullum had stayed consistent with their prior tenure in charge.
"The atmosphere has been extremely upbeat, unchanged," said Crawley. "It's just trying to be optimistic, play our way, with lots of freedom. It felt like we could do an extraordinary feat entering this game."
The Hosts Close of Rapid Series Victory
The opener's dismissal on day four was part of a crucial three-wicket burst by Australia off-spinner Lyon.
Lyon's three wickets in a short spell – including the wickets of Brook and Stokes himself – left England 207-6 chasing a daunting total of 435.
This means, the home team need four wickets on Sunday's last day to move to an unassailable 3-0 advantage after three matches played.
A loss will extend England's winless run in this country to 18 Tests and condemn them to a fourth successive away Ashes series defeat.
The current battle is set to be decided in just eleven days of play – with England fell the first two Tests in rapid time respectively.
Not since 1921, when Australia completed victory in the UK in eight days, has the outcome of the Ashes urn been decided so quickly. Australia have also triumphed in eleven days on two other instances in the modern era.
"This is disappointing," said the batsman. "We came here to win the Ashes and now we are staring down the barrel now."
"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 inevitably tough touring here to face them. They were the favourites coming in to it have demonstrated their quality."
Ollie Pope's Place In Question
Although Crawley's innings in Adelaide probably answers questions about his short-term future in the England team, Ollie Pope appears under threat for his position in the Melbourne Test on Boxing Day.
The Surrey batsman fell for 17 in England's second knock on Saturday, extending his modest returns versus Australia.
Across 16 Ashes innings, the Surrey man has never made a fifty and averages 17.62.
Only one other English batsman in over a century – Amiss – has played as many times in the top order in Ashes Tests and returned a poorer average.
But, Crawley said any notion his teammate is under the microscope comes from "you guys" – referring to the press – "not inside the camp."
"The squad is fully aware of his considerable talent," said Crawley. "He has had a productive year to be frank."
"He has produced some really good knocks. It is noise externally. There's no chat like that regarding Pope in the camp," Crawley finished.
