England opening batter Crawley has indicated he was not familiar with statements made by skipper Stokes regarding the team environment not being "those lacking fortitude".
The all-rounder delivered those words in multiple interviews in the wake of his team's loss in the second match of the Ashes against Australia earlier this month.
In the lead-up to the third Test, where England now face defeat with a match to spare, the captain stated he had allowed his sentiment to "drift around" among the playing group.
"I have completed the necessary discussions in recent days that I required," remarked Stokes.
But, after Crawley scored 85 on the fourth day in Adelaide, he stated: "I didn't see that."
"I didn't see and wasn't really looking out for it. Our approach is to take anything stated in the press with a pinch of salt," he added.
Frank Discussions and Consistent Messaging
The captain made the "weak men" comment after his side were beaten in the second Test to go 2-0 down.
The England squad afterwards took a break to Noosa between the second and third Tests.
Prior to the Adelaide contest, he said his team had held "honest" talks and he had urged them to "display some fight" in their effort to stay in contention in the series.
Yet, the Kent batsman stated the guidance from Stokes and coach Brendon McCullum had remained consistent with their previous tenure in leadership.
"The atmosphere has been very positive, the same as always," noted the opener. "The focus is on maintaining positivity, playing our brand, with lots of freedom. We believed we could do an extraordinary feat going into this game."
The Hosts Close of Rapid Ashes Triumph
Crawley's dismissal on day four came during a decisive three-wicket burst by Australian spinner Lyon.
Lyon's triple strike in 20 deliveries – including the wickets of Harry Brook and Ben Stokes – left England six down for 207 in pursuit of a notional total of 435 runs.
Consequently, the home team require just four more wickets on Sunday's final day to move to an insurmountable 3-0 lead after three Tests.
A loss will extend England's winless run in Australia to 18 consecutive matches and condemn them to a fourth successive overseas Ashes series defeat.
This series is set to be decided in only eleven days of cricket – with England fell the initial matches in rapid time each.
The last time 1921, when Australia sealed victory in England in eight days, has the outcome of the Ashes urn been determined more swiftly. Australia have also won in eleven days on two other instances in the 21st century.
"It's disappointing," admitted Crawley. "We came here to regain the Ashes and we're staring down the barrel at this point."
"There will still be significant pride at stake and we'll definitely view it like that," he continued.
"The challenge has been tough. Australia is a formidable team. It was inevitably 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 Adelaide probably answers questions about his short-term place in the side, Pope looks under immense pressure for his position in the Melbourne Test on Boxing Day.
The Surrey batsman was out for 17 runs in England's second knock on Saturday, extending his poor record against Australia.
Across 16 Ashes innings, Pope has failed to score a fifty and averages 17.62.
A solitary other English batsman since 1900 – Dennis Amiss – has played as many times in the top order in the Ashes and returned a lower average.
However, Crawley said any suggestion his teammate is under the microscope comes from "you guys" – meaning the press – "not inside the camp."
"The squad is fully aware how good of a player he is," said he. "He has had a productive year to be frank."
"He has played several excellent innings. This is noise from the outside. There's no chat like that on Ollie amongst the players," Crawley finished.
