England opener Crawley suggested he had no knowledge of comments made by skipper Stokes regarding the dressing room as no place for "those lacking fortitude".
Stokes delivered this message in multiple conversations in the wake of England's loss in the second match of the Ashes series against Australia earlier this month.
Ahead of the Adelaide Test, where England now face defeat at the earliest opportunity, the captain noted he had let his message to "circulate freely" among the playing group.
"I have completed all the talking in recent days that I needed to have done," remarked Stokes.
However, after the opener scored 85 on the penultimate day in the third Test, he commented: "I didn't see that."
"I didn't see and wasn't really looking out for it. We take anything stated in the press with some skepticism," he added.
Frank Discussions and Consistent Messaging
Stokes made the "fragile individuals" observation subsequent to his side suffered a loss in the second Test to go 2-0 down.
The team subsequently went on a break to a Queensland resort in the gap between the second and third Tests.
Before this match, Stokes revealed his players had held "honest" talks and he had urged them to "display some fight" in their effort to remain alive in the Ashes battle.
Yet, Crawley stated the guidance from Stokes and head coach Brendon McCullum had remained consistent with their previous three years in charge.
"The atmosphere has been very positive, unchanged," noted Crawley. "The focus is just trying to be optimistic, playing our brand, with great liberty. It felt like we could do something special entering this game."
The Hosts Close of Historic Series Victory
The opener's dismissal late on Saturday was part of a crucial triple-strike by Australian off-spinner Nathan Lyon.
Lyon's three wickets in 20 deliveries – including the wickets of Harry Brook and Ben Stokes – meant the chasing side 207-6 in pursuit of a notional target of 435.
This means, Australia require just four more wickets on Sunday's last day to move to an unassailable 3-0 advantage with three Tests.
Defeat will extend England's drought in Australia to 18 Tests and ensure a fourth straight away Ashes defeat.
The current battle is set to be decided in just 11 days of play – after England fell the first two Tests in two and four days each.
Not since 1921, when the Australians sealed victory in the UK in eight days, has the outcome of the Ashes urn been decided more swiftly. The hosts have also won in eleven days on two other instances in the modern era.
"It's disappointing," admitted the batsman. "Our goal was to regain the Ashes and we're staring down the barrel now."
"There remains significant pride at stake and we will definitely view it with that mindset," Crawley added.
"The challenge has been tough. Australia is a formidable team. It was inevitably tough touring here against them. They entered as the favourites and have demonstrated their quality."
Pope's Position In Question
While Crawley's performance in Adelaide likely secures questions about his short-term place in the England team, Ollie Pope appears under immense pressure for his position in the fourth Test starting December 26th.
Pope was out for 17 runs in England's second knock on day four, adding to his poor record against Australia.
Across 16 Ashes innings, Pope has failed to score a half-century and boasts an average of 17.62.
A solitary other English batsman since 1900 – Amiss – has played as many times in the top order in Ashes Tests and returned a poorer average.
But, the opener insisted any suggestion Pope is being scrutinised comes from "the media" – referring to the press – "not inside the camp."
"We all know how good of a player he is," said he. "He has had a good year to be frank."
"He has produced several excellent innings. It is noise from the outside. There's no chat like that on Ollie in the camp," Crawley concluded.
