The English opening batter Crawley has indicated he was not familiar with statements made by skipper Stokes about the team environment as no place for "weak men".
The all-rounder delivered this message in several interviews following England's defeat in the second match of the Ashes versus the Australians earlier this month.
Ahead of the Adelaide Test, where the visitors now face defeat at the earliest opportunity, the captain noted he had let his sentiment to "circulate freely" within the playing group.
"I've done all the talking in recent days that I needed to have done," said Stokes.
But, following the opener made 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. Our approach is to take everything that is said in the press with some skepticism," he added.
Raw Conversations and Steady Philosophy
The captain issued his "weak men" comment subsequent to his side suffered a loss in the second Test to fall two matches behind.
The England squad afterwards went on a holiday to a Queensland resort between the second and third Tests.
Prior to this match, Stokes said his players had held "honest" talks and he had asked them to "show a bit of dog" in their battle to remain in contention in the Ashes battle.
Nevertheless, the Kent batsman stated the guidance from Stokes and head coach McCullum had remained in line with their prior three years in charge.
"It's been very positive, the same as always," said Crawley. "It's just trying to be optimistic, playing our brand, with great liberty. We believed we could do something special entering this game."
Australia On the Verge of Rapid Series Victory
The opener's wicket on day four was part of a decisive triple-strike by Australian off-spinner Nathan Lyon.
The spinner's three wickets in 20 deliveries – including the wickets of Brook and Ben Stokes – left England six down for 207 in pursuit of a daunting target of 435.
Consequently, the home team need four wickets on Sunday's final day to secure an unassailable 3-0 advantage after three matches played.
Defeat will extend the English team's winless run in this country to 18 consecutive matches and ensure a fourth successive away Ashes series defeat.
The current battle is set to be decided in only 11 days of cricket – after England fell the first two Tests in two and four days each.
Not since 1921, when the Australians completed a series win in England in eight days, has the destination of the Ashes urn been decided more swiftly. The hosts have also triumphed in 11 days on two other occasions in the 21st century.
"It's disheartening," said Crawley. "We came here to win the Ashes and now we are staring down the barrel now."
"There will still be significant pride at stake and we'll certainly approach it like that," he continued.
"The challenge has been difficult. Australia is a very, very good side. It was inevitably tough touring here to face them. They entered as the front-runners and have demonstrated their quality."
Pope's Position Under Scrutiny
While Crawley's performance in Adelaide probably answers doubts about his immediate place in the England team, Ollie Pope appears under immense pressure for his position in the Melbourne Test starting December 26th.
The Surrey batsman fell for 17 runs in the team's second knock on day four, extending his poor record versus the old enemy.
In 16 Ashes innings, Pope has failed to score a fifty and boasts an average of just 17.62.
Only one other England player since 1900 – Dennis Amiss – has played an equal number of innings in the top six in the Ashes and recorded a lower average.
But, Crawley insisted any notion his teammate is being scrutinised comes from "you guys" – meaning the journalists – "not inside the camp."
"We all know of his considerable talent," added he. "Ollie has enjoyed a good year if I'm honest."
"He has played several excellent innings. This is talk from the outside. There is no discussion of that nature on Ollie amongst the players," he concluded.
