The English opener Zak Crawley suggested he had no knowledge of statements made by captain Stokes about the dressing room as no place for "weak men".
The all-rounder delivered this message in several conversations following England's loss in the second match of the Ashes series against Australia earlier this month.
In the lead-up to the Adelaide Test, where the visitors are staring at defeat with a match to spare, the captain noted he had allowed his message to "drift around" within the squad.
"I have completed the necessary discussions over the past two days that I needed to have done," said Stokes.
However, following Crawley made 85 on the fourth day in Adelaide, he commented: "I didn't see that."
"I didn't see and wasn't really looking out for it. We take everything that is said in the media with a pinch of salt," he added.
Raw Conversations and Steady Philosophy
The captain issued his "fragile individuals" observation after England were beaten in Brisbane to fall 2-0 down.
The team subsequently went on a break to Noosa in the gap between the second and the upcoming Tests.
Before this match, he revealed his team had held "honest" conversations and he had asked them to "display some fight" in their battle to stay in contention in the Ashes battle.
Nevertheless, the Kent batsman asserted the guidance from Stokes and head coach McCullum had remained in line with their prior tenure in charge.
"The atmosphere has been extremely upbeat, unchanged," said Crawley. "The focus is just trying to be optimistic, play our way, with great liberty. It felt like we could do something special going into this game."
The Hosts On the Verge of Historic Series Victory
Crawley's wicket late on Saturday was part of a crucial three-wicket burst by Australia off-spinner Nathan Lyon.
The spinner's triple strike in 20 deliveries – including the wickets of Brook and Stokes himself – meant the chasing side 207-6 chasing a daunting target of 435 runs.
Consequently, the home team require four wickets on Sunday's final day to move to an unassailable 3-0 lead with three matches played.
Defeat would prolong the English team's drought in Australia to 18 Tests and ensure a fourth straight overseas Ashes series loss.
The current battle is set to be decided in just 11 days of cricket – with England losing the first two Tests in two and four days respectively.
The last time 1921, when the Australians completed a series win in the UK in eight days, has the outcome of the urn been decided so quickly. Australia have also won in eleven days on two other occasions in the 21st century.
"It's disappointing," admitted Crawley. "We came here to win the Ashes and now we are staring down the barrel now."
"There remains plenty to play for and we'll definitely view it like that," he continued.
"It's been tough. Australia is a formidable team. It was always going to be hard coming here against them. They were the front-runners and have demonstrated their quality."
Ollie Pope's Position In Question
Although the opener's innings in the third Test probably answers doubts about his short-term place in the side, Pope looks under immense pressure for his spot in the Melbourne Test starting December 26th.
Pope fell for 17 runs in England's second knock on Saturday, extending his modest returns versus Australia.
In sixteen Ashes knocks, Pope has never made a half-century and boasts an average of just 17.62.
Only one other England player since 1900 – Amiss – has featured as many times in the top order in the Ashes and recorded a poorer average.
But, the opener insisted any suggestion his teammate is being scrutinised comes from "the media" – meaning the journalists – "and not within the team."
"We all know how good of a player he is," said Crawley. "He has had a productive year if I'm honest."
"He has produced some really good knocks. It is noise externally. There is no chat of that nature regarding Pope amongst the players," he concluded.
