England opener Crawley suggested he was not familiar with comments made by captain Stokes regarding the team environment as no place for "those lacking fortitude".
Stokes delivered those words in several interviews following his team's loss in the second match of the Ashes against Australia earlier this month.
Ahead of the Adelaide Test, where England are staring at defeat at the earliest opportunity, Stokes noted he had let his sentiment to "drift around" among the playing group.
"I have completed all the talking in recent days that I required," said the England leader.
However, following the opener scored a knock of 85 on the fourth day in the third Test, he commented: "I missed those remarks."
"I wasn't actively searching for it. We take anything stated in the media with some skepticism," he added.
Frank Discussions and Steady Philosophy
The captain issued his "weak men" comment subsequent to England were beaten in the second Test to fall 2-0 down.
The team afterwards took a holiday to a Queensland resort between the second and the upcoming Tests.
Before this match, Stokes said his team had held "raw" talks and he had urged them to "show a bit of dog" in their effort to stay alive in the Ashes battle.
Yet, Crawley stated the guidance from the captain and head coach McCullum had stayed in line with their prior three years in leadership.
"The atmosphere has been extremely upbeat, the same as always," noted the opener. "The focus is on maintaining positivity, play our way, with great liberty. It felt like we could do something special entering this game."
Australia Close of Historic Series Victory
The opener's wicket late on Saturday came during a decisive three-wicket burst by Australian off-spinner Lyon.
Lyon's three wickets in 20 deliveries – including the wickets of Brook and Stokes himself – left the chasing side 207-6 in pursuit of a daunting target of 435.
Consequently, the home team require four wickets on the last day to move to an unassailable 3-0 advantage with three Tests.
Defeat would prolong England's drought in this country to 18 consecutive matches and condemn them to a fourth successive away Ashes series defeat.
The current battle will be completed in only 11 days of play – with England losing the initial matches in two and four days respectively.
The last time 1921, when the Australians completed victory in the UK in eight days, has the destination of the Ashes urn been determined more swiftly. The hosts have also triumphed in 11 days on two other instances in the modern era.
"It's disheartening," said Crawley. "Our goal was to win the Ashes and we're staring down the barrel now."
"There will still be plenty to play for and we'll definitely view it like that," Crawley added.
"It's been difficult. They're a formidable side. It was always going to be hard coming here against them. They entered as the front-runners coming in to it they've proven why."
Pope's Position Under Scrutiny
While the opener's performance in Adelaide probably answers questions about his immediate future in the England team, Ollie Pope appears under immense pressure for his spot in the Melbourne Test on Boxing Day.
Pope was out for 17 runs in England's second knock on Saturday, extending his poor record versus Australia.
In sixteen Ashes knocks, the Surrey man has never made a fifty and averages just 17.62.
Only one other England player since 1900 – Amiss – has featured an equal number of innings in the top six in Ashes Tests and recorded a poorer average.
But, Crawley said any suggestion his teammate is being scrutinised comes from "you guys" – meaning the press – "not inside the camp."
"We all know of his considerable talent," added he. "Ollie has enjoyed a productive year if I'm honest."
"He has produced some really good knocks. This is noise externally. There is no discussion like that on Ollie in the camp," he finished.
