England opener Zak Crawley suggested he was not familiar with statements made by skipper Stokes regarding the dressing room as no place for "those lacking fortitude".
Stokes delivered this message in multiple interviews in the wake of his team's defeat in the second Ashes against Australia previously.
In the lead-up to the third Test, where the visitors are staring at defeat at the earliest opportunity, Stokes noted he had allowed his sentiment to "drift around" among the playing group.
"I have completed all the talking over the past two days that I needed to have done," said Stokes.
But, following the opener scored 85 on the penultimate day in the third Test, he commented: "I didn't see that."
"I wasn't actively searching for it. We take everything that is said in the media with a pinch of salt," Crawley continued.
Raw Conversations and Steady Philosophy
The captain issued his "weak men" observation after England suffered a loss in the second Test to go two matches behind.
The England squad afterwards went on a holiday to Noosa in the gap between the second and third matches.
Before the Adelaide contest, Stokes revealed his players had held "honest" conversations and he had asked them to "display some fight" in their battle to remain alive in the Ashes battle.
Yet, the Kent batsman asserted the guidance from Stokes and coach Brendon McCullum had remained consistent with their previous three years in leadership.
"It's been very positive, the same as always," said the opener. "The focus is just trying to be optimistic, playing our brand, with lots of freedom. It felt like we could do something special going into this game."
The Hosts On the Verge of Rapid Series Victory
The opener's dismissal on day four was part of a crucial three-wicket burst by Australian off-spinner Nathan Lyon.
Lyon's three wickets in a short spell – he also bowled Brook and Ben Stokes – meant the chasing side 207-6 in pursuit of a daunting target of 435.
This means, Australia need just four more wickets on the last day to secure an unassailable 3-0 advantage with three Tests.
Defeat would prolong England's drought in Australia to 18 Tests and condemn them to a fourth straight overseas Ashes defeat.
The current battle is set to be decided in just 11 days of play – with England fell the first two Tests in rapid time each.
The last time 1921, when Australia completed a series win in England in eight days, has the outcome of the urn been determined so quickly. The hosts have also triumphed in 11 days on two other instances in the modern era.
"This is disheartening," admitted 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'll definitely view it with that mindset," Crawley added.
"It's been tough. Australia is a very, very good team. It was inevitably hard coming here to face them. They were the favourites and have demonstrated their quality."
Pope's Place In Question
Although Crawley's innings in Adelaide likely secures questions about his short-term place in the side, Pope appears under threat for his position in the fourth Test on Boxing Day.
Pope was out for 17 runs in the team's second innings on Saturday, adding to his poor record versus the old enemy.
Across sixteen Ashes knocks, the Surrey man has failed to score a fifty and averages just 17.62.
A solitary other English batsman in over a century – Dennis Amiss – has featured as many times in the top six in the Ashes and returned a lower average.
However, Crawley said any suggestion Pope is being scrutinised originates with "you guys" – meaning the press – "not inside the camp."
"We all know of his considerable talent," said he. "He has had a good year to be frank."
"He has produced some really good knocks. This is talk from the outside. There is no chat like that regarding Pope amongst the players," Crawley concluded.
