England opening batter Crawley suggested he had no knowledge of statements made by skipper Stokes regarding the team environment as no place for "weak men".
The all-rounder delivered this message in several conversations following his team's loss in the second match of the Ashes versus Australia previously.
In the lead-up to the third Test, where England now face defeat with a match to spare, the captain stated he had allowed his message to "circulate freely" among the playing group.
"I've done all the talking over the past two days that I needed to have done," remarked Stokes.
But, after the opener scored 85 on the fourth day in the third Test, he stated: "I didn't see that."
"I didn't see and wasn't really looking out for it. We take anything stated in the media with a pinch of salt," he added.
Frank Discussions and Consistent Messaging
Stokes issued his "weak men" comment after his side suffered a loss in Brisbane to go two matches behind.
The team afterwards went on a holiday to a Queensland resort between the second and the upcoming matches.
Before the Adelaide contest, Stokes revealed his players had held "raw" conversations and he had asked them to "display some fight" in their effort to remain in contention in the Ashes battle.
Yet, Crawley asserted the messaging from the captain and head coach McCullum had remained in line with their previous three years in leadership.
"The atmosphere has been extremely upbeat, the same as always," said the opener. "It's just trying to be optimistic, play our way, with lots of freedom. It felt like we could do something special going into this game."
Australia Close of Rapid Series Victory
The opener's dismissal late on Saturday was part of a decisive triple-strike by Australian spinner Nathan Lyon.
The spinner's triple strike in 20 deliveries – he also bowled Harry Brook and Ben Stokes – meant the chasing side six down for 207 chasing a notional total of 435 runs.
This means, the home team need four wickets on the final day to move to an insurmountable three-nil advantage with three matches played.
A loss will extend the English team's drought in Australia to 18 Tests and ensure a fourth successive overseas Ashes series defeat.
The current battle will be completed in only eleven days of play – with England losing the initial matches in two and four days respectively.
The last time 1921, when the Australians sealed victory in the UK in eight days, has the destination of the Ashes urn been determined so quickly. Australia have also won in eleven days on two other instances in the 21st century.
"This is disappointing," admitted Crawley. "We came here to regain the Ashes and now we are staring down the barrel at this point."
"There remains significant pride at stake and we'll certainly approach it like that," he continued.
"The challenge has been tough. They're a formidable team. It was inevitably tough touring here against them. They entered as the favourites coming in to it have demonstrated their quality."
Ollie Pope's Position Under Scrutiny
Although Crawley's performance in Adelaide likely secures questions about his immediate future in the England team, Ollie Pope appears under threat for his position in the Melbourne Test starting December 26th.
The Surrey batsman was out for 17 in England's second innings on day four, adding to his poor record against the old enemy.
Across sixteen Ashes knocks, Pope has failed to score a half-century and averages 17.62.
Only one other English batsman since 1900 – Amiss – has played an equal number of innings in the top order in the Ashes and returned a lower average.
But, the opener insisted any suggestion his teammate is being scrutinised originates with "the media" – meaning the press – "not inside the camp."
"The squad is fully aware how good of a player he is," added Crawley. "He has had a good year to be frank."
"He has played several excellent innings. It is talk from the outside. There is no discussion like that on Ollie in the camp," he concluded.
