England opener Zak Crawley has indicated he was not familiar with comments from captain Stokes about the team environment not being "those lacking fortitude".
Stokes made those words in several conversations in the wake of England's defeat in the second Ashes against Australia previously.
Ahead of the third Test, where England are staring at defeat with a match to spare, Stokes stated he had let his message to "drift around" among the playing group.
"I've done the necessary discussions in recent days that I required," said the England leader.
However, following the opener made a knock of 85 on the penultimate day in the third Test, he commented: "I missed those remarks."
"I wasn't actively searching for it. Our approach is to take everything that is said in the press with some skepticism," he added.
Frank Discussions and Consistent Messaging
Stokes made the "fragile individuals" comment subsequent to his side were beaten in Brisbane to fall 2-0 down.
The team subsequently went on a holiday to a Queensland resort between the second and the upcoming matches.
Prior to the Adelaide contest, Stokes said his team had held "raw" talks and he had urged them to "display some fight" in their effort to remain alive in the Ashes battle.
Yet, Crawley asserted the messaging from Stokes and head coach McCullum had stayed in line with their prior tenure in leadership.
"It's been very positive, the same as always," said Crawley. "It's on maintaining positivity, play our way, with great liberty. It felt like we were capable of an extraordinary feat entering this Test."
The Hosts Close of Rapid Series Victory
Crawley's dismissal late on Saturday came during a decisive triple-strike by Australian spinner Lyon.
Lyon's triple strike in a short spell – he also bowled Harry Brook and Ben Stokes – meant England 207-6 chasing a notional total of 435.
This means, Australia require just four more wickets on the last day to move to an unassailable 3-0 lead with three Tests.
Defeat would prolong England's drought in this country to 18 Tests and condemn them to a fourth straight away Ashes defeat.
This series will be completed in just 11 days of play – after England fell the first two Tests in two and four days respectively.
The last time 1921, when the Australians sealed victory in England in eight days, has the destination of the urn been decided more swiftly. The hosts have also triumphed in 11 days on two other instances in the modern era.
"It's disheartening," admitted the batsman. "We came here to regain the Ashes and we're staring down the barrel at this point."
"There will still be plenty to play for and we will definitely view it with that mindset," he continued.
"The challenge has been difficult. They're a formidable team. It was inevitably tough coming here to face them. They were the favourites coming in to it have demonstrated their quality."
Ollie Pope's Position In Question
While the opener's performance in the third Test probably answers questions about his short-term future in the England team, Ollie Pope appears under threat for his spot in the fourth Test on Boxing Day.
Pope was out for 17 runs in the team's second knock on Saturday, extending his modest returns versus Australia.
In sixteen Ashes knocks, Pope has failed to score a half-century and boasts an average of just 17.62.
Only one other English batsman in over a century – Dennis Amiss – has featured as many times in the top six in the Ashes and recorded a poorer average.
However, Crawley insisted any suggestion Pope is being scrutinised comes from "you guys" – meaning the journalists – "and not within the team."
"The squad is fully aware how good of a player he is," added Crawley. "Ollie has enjoyed a good year to be frank."
"He has played several excellent innings. It is noise externally. There's no chat of that nature regarding Pope in the camp," Crawley concluded.
