The English opener Zak Crawley suggested he had no knowledge of comments from skipper Stokes regarding the team environment as no place for "weak men".
The all-rounder delivered those words in several interviews following his team's defeat in the second Ashes against Australia earlier this month.
Ahead of the Adelaide Test, where England now face defeat with a match to spare, Stokes noted he had allowed his sentiment to "circulate freely" among the squad.
"I have completed the necessary discussions over the past two days that I needed to have done," said Stokes.
However, after the opener scored 85 on the fourth day in the third Test, he stated: "I missed those remarks."
"I wasn't actively searching for it. Our approach is to take anything stated in the media with some skepticism," he added.
Raw Conversations and Steady Philosophy
Stokes issued his "fragile individuals" comment after his side suffered a loss in the second Test to fall two matches behind.
The England squad subsequently took a break to a Queensland resort in the gap between the second and third matches.
Before this match, Stokes revealed his team had held "raw" talks and he had urged them to "show a bit of dog" in their battle to stay in contention in the Ashes battle.
Yet, the Kent batsman asserted the guidance from the captain and coach McCullum had remained in line with their prior three years in charge.
"The atmosphere has been extremely upbeat, the same as always," noted the opener. "It's on maintaining positivity, play our way, with lots of freedom. It felt like we could do an extraordinary feat entering this game."
Australia On the Verge of Rapid Ashes Triumph
The opener's dismissal on day four was part of a decisive triple-strike by Australian spinner Lyon.
Lyon's three wickets in a short spell – he also bowled Brook and Stokes himself – left England 207-6 in pursuit of a notional total of 435.
This means, Australia need four wickets on the last day to move to an unassailable three-nil lead with three Tests.
A loss will extend the English team's winless run in Australia to 18 consecutive matches and condemn them to a fourth successive away Ashes series defeat.
The current battle will be completed in just 11 days of play – with England losing the initial matches in two and four days each.
Not since 1921, when the Australians completed victory in the UK in eight days, has the outcome of the urn been decided more swiftly. Australia have also triumphed in eleven days on two other instances in the 21st century.
"This is disheartening," said the batsman. "We came here to regain the Ashes and now we are staring down the barrel now."
"There will still be plenty to play for and we will definitely view it with that mindset," Crawley added.
"It's been tough. Australia is a formidable side. It was always going to be hard touring here to face them. They were the favourites and have demonstrated their quality."
Ollie Pope's Position Under Scrutiny
While the opener's innings in the third Test probably answers doubts about his short-term future in the side, Pope looks under threat for his spot in the fourth Test on Boxing Day.
Pope fell for 17 in England's second knock on day four, adding to his modest returns versus the old enemy.
Across 16 Ashes innings, Pope has never made a fifty and boasts an average of 17.62.
Only one other English batsman since 1900 – Dennis Amiss – has featured an equal number of innings in the top six in the Ashes and returned a poorer average.
However, the opener insisted any suggestion Pope is under the microscope comes from "you guys" – meaning the journalists – "and not within the team."
"The squad is fully aware of his considerable talent," said he. "He has had a productive year if I'm honest."
"He has played some really good knocks. It is talk externally. There is no discussion of that nature regarding Pope amongst the players," he finished.
