England opener Crawley has indicated he was not familiar with statements made by skipper Stokes about the team environment as no place for "those lacking fortitude".
Stokes made this message in several conversations in the wake of England's loss in the second match of the Ashes series versus Australia earlier this month.
Ahead of the Adelaide Test, where England are staring at a series loss with a match to spare, Stokes stated he had allowed 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 the England leader.
But, following Crawley scored 85 on the fourth day in the third Test, he stated: "I missed those remarks."
"I didn't see and wasn't really looking out for it. Our approach is to take anything stated in the press with some skepticism," he added.
Raw Conversations and Consistent Messaging
The captain issued his "weak men" observation subsequent to his side suffered a loss in the second Test to fall 2-0 down.
The England squad subsequently went on a holiday to a Queensland resort in the gap between the second and third matches.
Before this match, he revealed his players had held "raw" talks and he had asked them to "display some fight" in their battle to stay in contention in the series.
Yet, Crawley stated the guidance from Stokes and coach McCullum had stayed consistent with their previous tenure in charge.
"The atmosphere has been extremely upbeat, unchanged," noted the opener. "The focus is just trying to be optimistic, play our way, with great liberty. We believed we were capable of something special entering this game."
The Hosts On the Verge of Historic Series Victory
Crawley's dismissal on day four was part of a crucial triple-strike by Australia spinner Lyon.
The spinner's triple strike in 20 deliveries – including the wickets of Brook and Stokes himself – meant England 207-6 chasing a notional target of 435.
Consequently, Australia need just four more wickets on the final day to move to an insurmountable 3-0 lead with three Tests.
A loss would prolong England's drought in this country to 18 consecutive matches and condemn them to a fourth successive overseas Ashes loss.
The current battle will be completed in just eleven days of cricket – with England losing the first two Tests in rapid time respectively.
The last time 1921, when Australia sealed a series win in England in eight days, has the destination of the urn been determined so quickly. Australia have also triumphed in eleven days on two other instances in the modern era.
"This is disheartening," said Crawley. "Our goal was to regain the Ashes and we're facing elimination at this point."
"There will still be significant pride at stake and we will certainly approach it with that mindset," Crawley added.
"It's been difficult. Australia is a formidable team. It was always going to be hard touring here against them. They were the favourites coming in to it have demonstrated their quality."
Ollie Pope's Place Under Scrutiny
While Crawley's performance in Adelaide likely secures questions about his immediate future in the England team, Ollie Pope looks under immense pressure for his spot in the fourth Test on Boxing Day.
Pope fell for 17 in the team's second knock on Saturday, extending his modest returns against Australia.
Across sixteen Ashes knocks, Pope has failed to score a fifty and averages just 17.62.
Only one other England player in over a century – Amiss – has played as many times in the top order in Ashes Tests and recorded a poorer average.
However, Crawley insisted any suggestion his teammate is under the microscope originates with "you guys" – meaning the journalists – "not inside the camp."
"The squad is fully aware how good of a player he is," added he. "He has had a good year if I'm honest."
"He has played some really good knocks. It is talk externally. There is no chat of that nature on Ollie in the camp," he finished.
