The English opening batter Crawley suggested he was not familiar with comments from skipper Stokes regarding the dressing room not being "those lacking fortitude".
Stokes made those words in multiple conversations following his team's defeat in the second match of the Ashes series against the Australians earlier this month.
Ahead of the Adelaide Test, where the visitors are staring at defeat at the earliest opportunity, Stokes stated he had allowed his sentiment to "drift around" among the playing group.
"I've done all the talking in recent days that I required," said Stokes.
But, following the opener made 85 on the penultimate day in the third Test, he stated: "I didn't see that."
"I wasn't actively searching for it. Our approach is to take anything stated in the media with a pinch of salt," Crawley continued.
Frank Discussions and Consistent Messaging
The captain made the "weak men" comment subsequent to England were beaten in Brisbane to go two matches behind.
The England squad subsequently took a break to a Queensland resort in the gap between the second and the upcoming Tests.
Before this match, he said his team had held "honest" conversations and he had asked them to "display some fight" in their battle to remain in contention in the Ashes battle.
Yet, Crawley asserted the messaging from Stokes and coach McCullum had remained in line with their prior three years in charge.
"The atmosphere has been extremely upbeat, unchanged," noted Crawley. "It's just trying to be optimistic, play our way, with great liberty. It felt like we were capable of something special going into this Test."
The Hosts On the Verge of Rapid Series Victory
The opener's dismissal on day four was part of a decisive three-wicket burst by Australia spinner Nathan Lyon.
The spinner's triple strike in 20 deliveries – including the wickets of Brook and Ben Stokes – meant England six down for 207 chasing a daunting total of 435.
This means, the home team need just four more wickets on Sunday's final day to secure an unassailable 3-0 advantage after three Tests.
A loss would prolong the English team's drought in this country to 18 consecutive matches and ensure a fourth straight away Ashes series defeat.
This series is set to be decided in just eleven days of play – with England losing the initial matches in two and four days respectively.
The last time 1921, when Australia completed victory in the UK in eight days, has the outcome of the urn been decided so quickly. Australia have also triumphed in 11 days on two other instances in the modern era.
"This is disappointing," admitted the batsman. "Our goal was to win the Ashes and now we are staring down the barrel at this point."
"There remains significant pride at stake and we'll definitely view it with that mindset," Crawley added.
"The challenge has been difficult. Australia is a very, very good side. It was always going to be tough coming here to face them. They were the favourites coming in to it have demonstrated their quality."
Ollie Pope's Position In Question
While Crawley's innings in the third Test probably answers questions about his short-term future in the England team, Pope appears under immense pressure for his position in the fourth Test starting December 26th.
Pope was out for 17 in England's second knock on day four, adding to his modest returns against the old enemy.
Across 16 Ashes innings, the Surrey man has failed to score a fifty and boasts an average of just 17.62.
A solitary other England player since 1900 – Amiss – has featured an equal number of innings in the top six in the Ashes and returned a poorer average.
But, the opener insisted any suggestion Pope is under the microscope originates with "you guys" – meaning the journalists – "and not within the team."
"We all know how good of a player he is," added he. "Ollie has enjoyed a productive year if I'm honest."
"He has produced some really good knocks. This is noise from the outside. There is no chat like that regarding Pope amongst the players," he finished.
