The English opener Zak Crawley suggested he was not familiar with comments made by captain Stokes about the team environment not being "those lacking fortitude".
Stokes made those words in multiple conversations following England's loss in the second match of the Ashes series against Australia previously.
In the lead-up to the third Test, where England now face defeat with a match to spare, Stokes stated he had let his sentiment to "circulate freely" within the playing group.
"I've done all the talking in recent days that I needed to have done," said Stokes.
But, after Crawley made 85 on the penultimate day in Adelaide, he commented: "I missed those remarks."
"I didn't see and wasn't really looking out for it. Our approach is to take everything that is said in the press with some skepticism," he added.
Frank Discussions and Consistent Messaging
The captain issued his "weak men" comment after England were beaten in the second Test to fall two matches behind.
The team subsequently took a holiday to Noosa in the gap between the second and third matches.
Prior to this match, he revealed his team had held "honest" conversations and he had asked them to "show a bit of dog" in their battle to stay alive in the Ashes battle.
Nevertheless, Crawley stated the messaging from Stokes and coach Brendon McCullum had stayed in line with their prior tenure in leadership.
"The atmosphere has been very positive, unchanged," said Crawley. "The focus is on maintaining positivity, playing our brand, with great liberty. It felt like we could do an extraordinary feat entering this game."
The Hosts Close of Rapid Series Victory
Crawley's dismissal late on Saturday was part of a decisive triple-strike by Australia spinner Nathan Lyon.
Lyon's three wickets in 20 deliveries – including the wickets of Brook and Stokes himself – meant the chasing side 207-6 chasing a notional total of 435.
Consequently, the home team require just four more wickets on Sunday's final day to secure an unassailable three-nil lead with three Tests.
A loss will extend England's winless run in Australia to 18 consecutive matches and condemn them to a fourth successive away Ashes series loss.
The current battle is set to be decided in just eleven days of play – after England fell the initial matches in rapid time respectively.
The last time 1921, when the Australians sealed a series win in England in eight days, has the destination of the urn been decided so quickly. The hosts have also won in eleven days on two other instances in the modern era.
"This is disappointing," admitted Crawley. "We came here to regain the Ashes and we're facing elimination at this point."
"There will still be plenty to play for and we will definitely view it like that," he continued.
"The challenge has been difficult. They're a formidable team. It was inevitably hard coming here against them. They were the front-runners and have demonstrated their quality."
Pope's Place Under Scrutiny
While the opener's performance in the third Test likely secures questions about his immediate future in the England team, Pope appears under threat for his spot in the Melbourne Test starting December 26th.
Pope fell for 17 runs in England's second knock on day four, extending his modest returns against the old enemy.
Across sixteen Ashes knocks, Pope has never made a half-century and averages 17.62.
A solitary other English batsman since 1900 – Amiss – has featured as many times in the top order in the Ashes and returned a lower average.
But, Crawley insisted any suggestion Pope is being scrutinised comes from "you guys" – meaning the press – "and not within the team."
"We all know of his considerable talent," said Crawley. "Ollie has enjoyed a productive year if I'm honest."
"He has produced some really good knocks. This is noise externally. There's no chat of that nature on Ollie in the camp," Crawley finished.
