England opener Zak Crawley suggested he was not familiar with comments from captain Stokes about the dressing room as no place for "weak men".
Stokes delivered this message in multiple interviews following his team's loss in the second match of the Ashes series against Australia earlier this month.
Ahead of the Adelaide Test, where the visitors now face defeat with a match to spare, the captain noted he had allowed his message to "circulate freely" within the squad.
"I have completed the necessary discussions in recent days that I needed to have done," remarked the England leader.
But, following the opener made a knock of 85 on the penultimate day in Adelaide, he stated: "I missed those remarks."
"I didn't see and wasn't really looking out for it. We take everything that is said in the media with some skepticism," he added.
Raw Conversations and Steady Philosophy
The captain issued his "fragile individuals" comment after England were beaten in Brisbane to fall 2-0 down.
The team afterwards went on a holiday to a Queensland resort between the second and third matches.
Prior to the Adelaide contest, he revealed his players had held "honest" conversations and he had asked them to "show a bit of dog" in their effort to remain in contention in the series.
Nevertheless, the Kent batsman stated the messaging from the captain and coach McCullum had stayed consistent with their prior tenure in leadership.
"It's been very positive, unchanged," said the opener. "The focus is just trying to be optimistic, playing our brand, with lots of freedom. We believed we could do an extraordinary feat going into this game."
The Hosts Close of Historic Ashes Triumph
Crawley's dismissal on day four was part of a decisive triple-strike by Australian off-spinner Nathan Lyon.
Lyon's three wickets in a short spell – he also bowled Brook and Stokes himself – meant the chasing side six down for 207 chasing a notional total of 435 runs.
This means, the home team require four wickets on the final day to move to an unassailable 3-0 advantage with three Tests.
A loss would prolong the English team's drought in this country to 18 consecutive matches and ensure a fourth successive away Ashes series loss.
This series will be completed in only eleven days of cricket – after England losing the first two Tests in two and four days respectively.
Not since 1921, when the Australians sealed a series win in the UK in eight days, has the outcome of the Ashes urn been decided more swiftly. Australia have also triumphed in 11 days on two other instances in the 21st century.
"This is disappointing," admitted Crawley. "Our goal was to win the Ashes and we're staring down the barrel at this point."
"There will still be plenty to play for and we'll certainly approach it with that mindset," he continued.
"It's been tough. They're a formidable team. It was always going to be hard coming here to face them. They were the favourites coming in to it they've proven why."
Pope's Place Under Scrutiny
While the opener's performance in Adelaide probably answers doubts about his short-term place in the side, Pope looks under threat for his spot in the fourth Test starting December 26th.
The Surrey batsman was out for 17 runs in the team's second knock on Saturday, adding to his modest returns against the old enemy.
Across 16 Ashes innings, the Surrey man has failed to score a fifty and averages 17.62.
Only one other England player since 1900 – Amiss – has featured an equal number of innings in the top six in the Ashes and returned a poorer average.
But, the opener insisted any notion his teammate is under the microscope originates with "you guys" – meaning the press – "not inside the camp."
"The squad is fully aware of his considerable talent," added he. "Ollie has enjoyed a productive year to be frank."
"He has played several excellent innings. This is talk externally. There is no chat like that on Ollie amongst the players," he concluded.
