England opening batter Zak Crawley suggested he had no knowledge of comments made by captain Stokes about the dressing room as no place for "weak men".
Stokes delivered those words in several conversations in the wake of his team's defeat in the second match of the Ashes versus Australia previously.
In the lead-up to the Adelaide Test, where the visitors now face defeat at the earliest opportunity, the captain stated he had let his sentiment to "circulate freely" within the playing group.
"I've done the necessary discussions over the past two days that I required," said Stokes.
But, following the opener made 85 on the penultimate day in the third Test, he stated: "I missed those remarks."
"I wasn't actively searching for it. Our approach is to take everything that is said in the media with a pinch of salt," he added.
Frank Discussions and Steady Philosophy
Stokes made the "fragile individuals" comment after his side were beaten in the second Test to go two matches behind.
The England squad subsequently went on a holiday to a Queensland resort in the gap between the second and the upcoming matches.
Before this match, Stokes said his team had held "raw" talks and he had urged them to "display some fight" in their effort to stay in contention in the series.
Nevertheless, the Kent batsman asserted the guidance from the captain and head coach McCullum had remained consistent with their previous three years in charge.
"The atmosphere has been extremely upbeat, unchanged," noted Crawley. "The focus is just trying to be optimistic, play our way, with lots of freedom. It felt like we could do something special entering this game."
The Hosts Close of Historic Series Victory
Crawley's dismissal late on Saturday came during a decisive triple-strike by Australia off-spinner Nathan Lyon.
The spinner's triple strike in a short spell – including the wickets of Harry Brook and Stokes himself – meant the chasing side six down for 207 chasing a daunting total of 435 runs.
This means, the home team require just four more wickets on Sunday's final day to move to an insurmountable 3-0 lead with three Tests.
Defeat will extend England's drought in Australia to 18 consecutive matches and ensure a fourth straight overseas Ashes series loss.
The current battle will be completed in just eleven days of play – after England fell the first two Tests in two and four days each.
Not since 1921, when Australia sealed victory in England in eight days, has the outcome of the Ashes urn been determined more swiftly. The hosts have also triumphed in 11 days on two other instances in the 21st century.
"It's disheartening," said the batsman. "We came here to win the Ashes and we're staring down the barrel at this point."
"There will still be significant pride at stake and we will certainly approach it like that," he continued.
"The challenge has been tough. Australia is a formidable team. It was inevitably hard coming here to face them. They entered as the favourites and they've proven why."
Ollie Pope's Place Under Scrutiny
Although Crawley's innings in the third Test likely secures doubts about his immediate place in the England team, Ollie Pope looks under threat for his spot in the Melbourne Test on Boxing Day.
Pope was out for 17 in the team's second knock on Saturday, extending his modest returns against the old enemy.
In sixteen Ashes knocks, Pope has failed to score a fifty and boasts an average of 17.62.
Only one other English batsman in over a century – Dennis Amiss – has featured an equal number of innings in the top order in the Ashes and recorded a lower average.
However, the opener said any suggestion his teammate is being scrutinised originates with "the media" – referring to the journalists – "and not within the team."
"The squad is fully aware of his considerable talent," said he. "Ollie has enjoyed a productive year if I'm honest."
"He has played several excellent innings. This is talk externally. There's no chat like that regarding Pope amongst the players," he concluded.
