England opening batter Crawley suggested he had no knowledge of comments from skipper Stokes regarding the team environment as no place for "those lacking fortitude".
The all-rounder delivered this message in multiple interviews following his team's defeat in the second Ashes against Australia previously.
In the lead-up to the Adelaide Test, where the visitors are staring at a series loss at the earliest opportunity, the captain noted he had let his message to "drift around" among the squad.
"I've done the necessary discussions over the past two days that I needed to have done," remarked the England leader.
But, after Crawley scored a knock of 85 on the fourth day in Adelaide, he commented: "I missed those remarks."
"I didn't see and wasn't really looking out for it. We take anything stated in the press with a pinch of salt," Crawley continued.
Raw Conversations and Consistent Messaging
The captain made the "fragile individuals" comment subsequent to England suffered a loss in the second Test to go two matches behind.
The England squad afterwards went on a break to a Queensland resort in the gap between the second and third Tests.
Before this match, Stokes said his team had held "honest" talks and he had asked them to "show a bit of dog" in their effort to stay alive in the Ashes battle.
Yet, the Kent batsman asserted the guidance from Stokes and head coach Brendon McCullum had remained in line with their previous tenure in charge.
"The atmosphere has been extremely upbeat, the same as always," noted Crawley. "The focus is on maintaining positivity, play our way, with great liberty. We believed we could do something special entering this Test."
Australia Close of Rapid Ashes Triumph
The opener's dismissal late on Saturday was part of a decisive triple-strike by Australia spinner Nathan Lyon.
Lyon's three wickets in 20 deliveries – including the wickets of Brook and Stokes himself – left the chasing side 207-6 chasing a notional total of 435 runs.
This means, Australia need just four more wickets on the final day to secure an insurmountable 3-0 lead after three matches played.
A loss would prolong the English team's winless run in this country to 18 Tests and ensure a fourth straight away Ashes loss.
The current battle is set to be decided in just 11 days of play – with England losing the initial matches in rapid time each.
Not since 1921, when Australia completed 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.
"This is disappointing," said the batsman. "Our goal was to win the Ashes and we're facing elimination at this point."
"There will still be plenty to play for and we will certainly approach it with that mindset," Crawley added.
"It's been tough. Australia is a very, very good side. It was always going to be hard touring here against them. They were the front-runners coming in to it they've proven why."
Ollie Pope's Position Under Scrutiny
Although the opener's innings in Adelaide probably answers doubts about his short-term future in the England team, Ollie Pope appears under immense pressure for his position in the fourth Test on Boxing Day.
The Surrey batsman was out for 17 runs in the team's second innings on Saturday, extending his poor record against Australia.
In 16 Ashes innings, the Surrey man has failed to score a fifty and boasts an average of just 17.62.
Only one other England player since 1900 – Amiss – has played as many times in the top six in the Ashes and returned a poorer average.
However, Crawley insisted any notion Pope is under the microscope originates with "you guys" – referring to the press – "not inside the camp."
"We all know how good of a player he is," said he. "He has had a productive year if I'm honest."
"He has played several excellent innings. This is talk from the outside. There's no chat like that on Ollie amongst the players," Crawley finished.
