England opener Zak Crawley suggested he had no knowledge of comments made by skipper Stokes about the dressing room not being "weak men".
The all-rounder made those words in multiple conversations in the wake of England's loss in the second match of the Ashes series versus Australia 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 "drift around" among the playing group.
"I have completed all the talking in recent days that I required," remarked the England leader.
But, following the opener made 85 on the penultimate day in Adelaide, he stated: "I missed those remarks."
"I wasn't actively searching for it. We take everything that is said in the press with some skepticism," Crawley continued.
Raw Conversations and Steady Philosophy
Stokes issued his "weak men" observation after England were beaten in Brisbane to fall 2-0 down.
The England squad afterwards took a holiday to a Queensland resort in the gap between the second and the upcoming Tests.
Before this match, Stokes said his players had held "honest" talks and he had asked them to "show a bit of dog" in their effort to remain in contention in the Ashes battle.
Nevertheless, the Kent batsman stated the messaging from the captain and head coach Brendon McCullum had remained consistent with their prior tenure in charge.
"It's been extremely upbeat, the same as always," said Crawley. "The focus is on maintaining positivity, playing our brand, with lots of freedom. We believed we were capable of an extraordinary feat going into this Test."
The Hosts Close of Historic Ashes Triumph
The opener's wicket late on Saturday was part of a crucial three-wicket burst by Australian off-spinner Lyon.
The spinner's triple strike in 20 deliveries – including the wickets of Harry Brook and Stokes himself – left England 207-6 in pursuit of a daunting total of 435 runs.
Consequently, Australia require just four more wickets on the last day to move to an unassailable three-nil advantage with three Tests.
Defeat would prolong England's winless run in Australia to 18 consecutive matches and condemn them to a fourth successive away Ashes loss.
The current battle is set to be decided in just 11 days of play – after England losing the initial matches in two and four days respectively.
Not since 1921, when Australia sealed a series win in England in eight days, has the destination of the Ashes urn been decided so quickly. Australia have also won in eleven days on two other occasions in the 21st century.
"This is disheartening," said the batsman. "We came here to win the Ashes and we're facing elimination now."
"There remains plenty to play for and we will definitely view it like that," Crawley added.
"It's been tough. Australia is a formidable team. It was always going to be tough coming here against them. They were the favourites and they've proven why."
Ollie Pope's Position In Question
Although Crawley's innings in the third Test likely secures doubts about his immediate place in the England team, Pope appears under immense pressure for his spot in the Melbourne Test on Boxing Day.
The Surrey batsman was out for 17 runs in England's second knock on day four, adding to his modest returns against Australia.
In 16 Ashes innings, the Surrey man has failed to score a fifty and averages just 17.62.
A solitary other English batsman in over a century – Amiss – has played an equal number of innings in the top order in Ashes Tests and returned a lower average.
But, Crawley insisted any notion his teammate is being scrutinised originates with "you guys" – referring to the journalists – "not inside the camp."
"We all know how good of a player he is," said Crawley. "He has had a good year if I'm honest."
"He has produced some really good knocks. This is noise from the outside. There's no discussion like that regarding Pope amongst the players," he finished.
