England opener Zak Crawley suggested he was not familiar with comments made by skipper Stokes about the team environment not being "those lacking fortitude".
The all-rounder made those words in several conversations following his team's defeat in the second Ashes versus the Australians earlier this month.
In the lead-up to the third Test, where England now face defeat at the earliest opportunity, the captain noted he had let his sentiment to "circulate freely" within the squad.
"I have completed the necessary discussions in recent days that I needed to have done," remarked Stokes.
But, following the opener made 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 anything stated in the press with a pinch of salt," Crawley continued.
Raw Conversations and Steady Philosophy
The captain made the "fragile individuals" comment after his side were beaten in Brisbane to fall 2-0 down.
The team afterwards went on a holiday to Noosa between the second and third Tests.
Prior to this match, he revealed his team had held "honest" talks and he had asked them to "show a bit of dog" in their effort to stay in contention in the Ashes battle.
Nevertheless, Crawley stated the guidance from Stokes and head coach Brendon McCullum had stayed in line with their previous tenure in charge.
"The atmosphere has been very positive, unchanged," noted Crawley. "It's on maintaining positivity, play our way, with great liberty. It felt like we were capable of an extraordinary feat going into this Test."
Australia On the Verge of Rapid Ashes Triumph
The opener's dismissal late on Saturday was part of a crucial triple-strike by Australian spinner Nathan Lyon.
Lyon's three wickets in 20 deliveries – including the wickets of Brook and Ben Stokes – left England six down for 207 chasing a daunting total of 435 runs.
This means, Australia require four wickets on the final day to move to an unassailable 3-0 advantage with three matches played.
A loss would prolong the English team's drought in Australia to 18 Tests and condemn them to a fourth straight overseas Ashes series loss.
This series will be completed in only eleven days of cricket – with England fell the first two Tests in two and four days each.
The last time 1921, when the Australians completed victory in the UK in eight days, has the destination of the Ashes urn been determined so quickly. Australia have also won in eleven days on two other instances in the modern era.
"This is disappointing," admitted the batsman. "Our goal was to regain the Ashes and now we are staring down the barrel now."
"There will still be significant pride at stake and we will definitely view it with that mindset," he continued.
"It's been tough. They're a formidable team. It was always going to be tough coming here against them. They were the front-runners and have demonstrated their quality."
Ollie Pope's Place In Question
Although the opener's innings in the third Test likely secures questions about his immediate future in the England team, Pope looks under threat for his position in the Melbourne Test starting December 26th.
The Surrey batsman fell for 17 runs in the team's second knock on day four, extending his modest returns against Australia.
Across 16 Ashes innings, Pope has never made a fifty and averages just 17.62.
Only one other English batsman since 1900 – Dennis Amiss – has featured as many times in the top order in the Ashes and returned a poorer average.
But, the opener said any notion Pope is being scrutinised originates with "the media" – meaning the journalists – "and not within the team."
"We all know of his considerable talent," added he. "He has had a good year if I'm honest."
"He has produced several excellent innings. This is noise externally. There is no discussion like that on Ollie amongst the players," he concluded.
