The English opening batter Zak Crawley suggested he had no knowledge of statements from skipper Stokes about the team environment as no place for "those lacking fortitude".
Stokes delivered this message in multiple conversations in the wake of his team's loss in the second Ashes against Australia previously.
Ahead of the Adelaide Test, where England now face defeat with a match to spare, Stokes noted he had allowed his message to "circulate freely" among the squad.
"I have completed all the talking in recent days that I needed to have done," remarked Stokes.
However, following Crawley scored a knock of 85 on the fourth day in Adelaide, he stated: "I didn't see that."
"I didn't see and wasn't really looking out for it. Our approach is to take anything stated in the media with a pinch of salt," Crawley continued.
Frank Discussions and Steady Philosophy
The captain made the "fragile individuals" comment after England were beaten in the second Test to fall 2-0 down.
The team afterwards took a holiday to a Queensland resort between the second and third matches.
Prior to this match, Stokes said his players had held "honest" talks and he had asked them to "show a bit of dog" in their battle to stay in contention in the Ashes battle.
Yet, the Kent batsman asserted the messaging from Stokes and head coach Brendon McCullum had remained consistent with their prior three years in leadership.
"It's been extremely upbeat, the same as always," noted the opener. "It's on maintaining positivity, playing our brand, with great liberty. We believed we were capable of something special going into this game."
The Hosts Close of Rapid Ashes Triumph
Crawley's wicket on day four came during a decisive triple-strike by Australia off-spinner Lyon.
The spinner's three wickets in 20 deliveries – including the wickets of Harry Brook and Ben Stokes – left the chasing side 207-6 chasing a daunting target of 435 runs.
This means, the home team need just four more wickets on the final day to move to an insurmountable 3-0 advantage with three matches played.
Defeat would prolong England's winless run in this country to 18 Tests and ensure a fourth straight away Ashes defeat.
The current battle is set to be decided in only eleven days of cricket – with England fell the initial matches in two and four days each.
The last time 1921, when Australia sealed a series win in the UK in eight days, has the destination of the urn been decided so quickly. Australia have also won in eleven days on two other occasions in the 21st century.
"It's disheartening," said the batsman. "Our goal was to win the Ashes and now we are facing elimination at this point."
"There will still be significant pride at stake and we will certainly approach it with that mindset," Crawley added.
"The challenge has been tough. They're a very, very good team. It was inevitably hard coming here to face them. They entered as the front-runners coming in to it have demonstrated their quality."
Ollie Pope's Position In Question
Although Crawley's performance in Adelaide probably answers doubts about his immediate future in the side, Ollie Pope looks under immense pressure for his spot in the fourth Test on Boxing Day.
The Surrey batsman was out for 17 in the team's second knock on day four, extending his poor record against the old enemy.
Across sixteen Ashes knocks, the Surrey man has never made a half-century and boasts an average of just 17.62.
A solitary other England player since 1900 – Dennis Amiss – has featured as many times in the top order in the Ashes and recorded a poorer average.
But, Crawley insisted any notion his teammate is being scrutinised originates with "the media" – meaning the journalists – "and not within the team."
"We all know how good of a player he is," said Crawley. "Ollie has enjoyed a productive year to be frank."
"He has played some really good knocks. It is talk externally. There's no chat of that nature regarding Pope in the camp," Crawley concluded.
