England opener Crawley suggested he had no knowledge of comments made by skipper Stokes regarding the team environment as no place for "weak men".
Stokes delivered those words in several conversations in the wake of England's loss in the second Ashes versus Australia earlier this month.
Ahead of the Adelaide Test, where the visitors are staring at a series loss with a match to spare, Stokes stated he had allowed his sentiment to "circulate freely" among the playing group.
"I have completed the necessary discussions in recent days that I needed to have done," remarked Stokes.
But, following the opener made a knock of 85 on the fourth day in the third Test, he commented: "I missed those remarks."
"I didn't see and wasn't really looking out for it. We take anything stated in the press with some skepticism," he added.
Raw Conversations and Consistent Messaging
The captain issued his "fragile individuals" comment after England suffered a loss in the second Test to go 2-0 down.
The team subsequently took a break to Noosa in the gap between the second and third Tests.
Before the Adelaide contest, Stokes said his team had held "honest" talks and he had urged them to "display some fight" in their effort to stay in contention in the Ashes battle.
Yet, the Kent batsman stated the messaging from the captain and head coach Brendon McCullum had stayed consistent with their prior three years in charge.
"It's been extremely upbeat, the same as always," noted the opener. "The focus is just trying to be optimistic, play our way, with great liberty. We believed we could do something special going into this game."
The Hosts On the Verge of Rapid Series Victory
The opener's dismissal on day four came during a crucial three-wicket burst by Australia off-spinner Lyon.
The spinner's triple strike in 20 deliveries – including the wickets of Brook and Stokes himself – meant the chasing side six down for 207 chasing a daunting target of 435 runs.
Consequently, Australia require just four more wickets on Sunday's final day to secure an insurmountable three-nil advantage with three matches played.
A loss will extend the English team's winless run in Australia to 18 consecutive matches and ensure a fourth successive away Ashes series loss.
This series is set to be decided in just eleven days of cricket – with England losing the initial matches in rapid time each.
The last time 1921, when Australia sealed a series win in England in eight days, has the destination of the Ashes urn been decided so quickly. The hosts have also won in eleven days on two other instances in the modern era.
"This is disappointing," said the batsman. "We came here to regain the Ashes and now we are facing elimination at this point."
"There remains plenty to play for and we'll certainly approach it with that mindset," he continued.
"The challenge has been tough. They're a formidable team. It was always going to be hard coming here against them. They entered as the favourites coming in to it they've proven why."
Pope's Place Under Scrutiny
Although the opener's innings in the third Test likely secures questions about his short-term place in the side, Pope looks under threat for his spot in the fourth Test starting December 26th.
The Surrey batsman fell for 17 in England's second knock on Saturday, extending his poor record against the old enemy.
Across sixteen Ashes knocks, the Surrey man has never made a half-century and boasts an average of just 17.62.
Only one other English batsman since 1900 – Amiss – has played as many times in the top six in the Ashes and returned a poorer average.
But, the opener said any notion his teammate is being scrutinised originates with "the media" – referring to the press – "and not within the team."
"The squad is fully aware of his considerable talent," added he. "He has had a productive year if I'm honest."
"He has played several excellent innings. This is talk externally. There is no chat like that regarding Pope in the camp," he finished.
