England opener Crawley has indicated he was not familiar with comments from skipper Stokes about the dressing room not being "weak men".
The all-rounder made those words in multiple conversations in the wake of his team's defeat in the second Ashes series versus the Australians previously.
Ahead of the Adelaide Test, where England are staring at defeat with a match to spare, the captain noted he had let his message to "circulate freely" within the squad.
"I've done all the talking over the past two days that I required," remarked Stokes.
But, after the opener made 85 on the fourth day in Adelaide, he commented: "I didn't see that."
"I wasn't actively searching for it. Our approach is to take everything that is said in the media with some skepticism," Crawley continued.
Frank Discussions and Consistent Messaging
The captain made the "weak men" comment after his side suffered a loss in Brisbane to fall 2-0 down.
The England squad subsequently went on a holiday to Noosa between the second and third Tests.
Prior to the Adelaide contest, he said his team had held "raw" talks and he had asked them to "display some fight" in their effort to stay alive in the series.
Nevertheless, Crawley stated the guidance from the captain and head coach Brendon McCullum had remained consistent with their previous three years in charge.
"The atmosphere has been extremely upbeat, unchanged," noted the opener. "It's on maintaining positivity, play our way, with lots of freedom. It felt like we were capable of an extraordinary feat entering this game."
The Hosts Close of Rapid Ashes Triumph
The opener's dismissal late on Saturday came during a decisive three-wicket burst by Australian spinner Nathan Lyon.
The spinner's three wickets in 20 deliveries – including the wickets of Harry Brook and Ben Stokes – left the chasing side 207-6 chasing a daunting target of 435.
This means, Australia require four wickets on Sunday's final day to move to an unassailable 3-0 advantage with three Tests.
A loss will extend England'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 cricket – after England fell the initial matches in rapid time each.
Not since 1921, when Australia sealed a series win in the UK in eight days, has the destination of the urn been decided more swiftly. The hosts have also won in eleven days on two other occasions in the 21st century.
"This is disheartening," admitted the batsman. "Our goal was to win the Ashes and now we are staring down the barrel at this point."
"There remains plenty to play for and we'll certainly approach it like that," he continued.
"The challenge has been difficult. Australia is a formidable side. It was always going to be hard coming here against them. They entered as the front-runners coming in to it have demonstrated their quality."
Ollie Pope's Place In Question
While the opener's performance in Adelaide likely secures doubts about his short-term place in the England team, Ollie Pope appears under threat for his spot in the fourth Test starting December 26th.
Pope was out for 17 in the team's second knock on day four, extending his poor record versus Australia.
In sixteen Ashes knocks, the Surrey man has failed to score a fifty and averages just 17.62.
A solitary other England player since 1900 – Amiss – has featured as many times in the top order in Ashes Tests and recorded a lower average.
But, the opener insisted any suggestion his teammate is being scrutinised comes from "the media" – referring to the press – "and not within the team."
"We all know how good of a player he is," added Crawley. "He has had a productive year if I'm honest."
"He has produced some really good knocks. This is talk from the outside. There's no discussion of that nature on Ollie amongst the players," Crawley concluded.
