England opener Crawley has indicated he was not familiar with comments made by captain Stokes about the team environment not being "those lacking fortitude".
Stokes made those words in multiple interviews in the wake of England's defeat in the second match of the Ashes series against the Australians previously.
In the lead-up to the third Test, where England are staring at a series loss at the earliest opportunity, Stokes stated he had allowed his sentiment to "circulate freely" within the playing group.
"I have completed the necessary discussions in recent days that I required," remarked the England leader.
But, following Crawley scored a knock of 85 on the fourth day in Adelaide, he commented: "I didn't see that."
"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," Crawley continued.
Raw Conversations and Consistent Messaging
Stokes issued his "fragile individuals" comment after his side suffered a loss in Brisbane to fall 2-0 down.
The team subsequently went on a break to a Queensland resort in the gap between the second and third Tests.
Before the Adelaide contest, he revealed his team had held "honest" talks and he had urged them to "show a bit of dog" in their battle to remain in contention in the Ashes battle.
Yet, the Kent batsman asserted the guidance from the captain and head coach McCullum had remained in line with their previous tenure in leadership.
"The atmosphere has been very positive, unchanged," said Crawley. "It's just trying to be optimistic, play our way, with great liberty. It felt like we could do an extraordinary feat going into this game."
The Hosts On the Verge of Historic Series Victory
The opener's wicket late on Saturday came during a decisive three-wicket burst by Australia off-spinner Nathan Lyon.
The spinner's three wickets in a short spell – including the wickets of Harry Brook and Ben Stokes – meant England 207-6 chasing a notional target of 435.
This means, the home team need just four more wickets on the final day to secure an insurmountable 3-0 lead after three Tests.
A loss will extend the English team's drought in Australia to 18 consecutive matches and condemn them to a fourth straight away Ashes loss.
The current battle will be completed in just eleven days of play – with England fell the initial matches in two and four days respectively.
Not since 1921, when Australia completed a series win in England in eight days, has the destination of the Ashes urn been determined more swiftly. Australia have also triumphed in 11 days on two other occasions in the modern era.
"This is disheartening," admitted Crawley. "Our goal was to win the Ashes and now we are facing elimination now."
"There remains significant pride at stake and we'll certainly approach it like that," he continued.
"It's been difficult. Australia is a very, very good team. It was inevitably tough touring here against them. They were the front-runners and they've proven why."
Ollie Pope's Place Under Scrutiny
Although the opener's innings in Adelaide likely secures doubts about his immediate place in the side, Ollie Pope looks under immense pressure for his spot in the fourth Test on Boxing Day.
Pope fell for 17 runs in England's second innings on day four, extending his poor record versus Australia.
In 16 Ashes innings, Pope has never made a fifty and averages 17.62.
Only one other English batsman in over a century – Dennis Amiss – has played an equal number of innings in the top order in Ashes Tests and recorded a poorer average.
But, the opener insisted any suggestion his teammate is being scrutinised comes from "the media" – meaning the journalists – "and not within the team."
"The squad is fully aware of his considerable talent," added Crawley. "Ollie has enjoyed a productive year to be frank."
"He has produced some really good knocks. It is talk externally. There is no discussion like that on Ollie amongst the players," Crawley concluded.
