England opening batter Crawley has indicated he was not familiar with comments from captain Stokes regarding the dressing room as no place for "those lacking fortitude".
The all-rounder delivered those words in several conversations following England's defeat in the second match of the Ashes against the Australians earlier this month.
Ahead of the Adelaide Test, where the visitors now face defeat at the earliest opportunity, the captain noted he had allowed his sentiment to "circulate freely" within the squad.
"I have completed the necessary discussions in recent days that I required," remarked Stokes.
However, following Crawley scored a knock of 85 on the penultimate day in the third Test, he commented: "I missed those remarks."
"I wasn't actively searching for it. Our approach is to take everything that is said in the media with some skepticism," Crawley continued.
Frank Discussions and Consistent Messaging
Stokes issued his "fragile individuals" observation subsequent to England suffered a loss in the second Test to go two matches behind.
The England squad afterwards took a holiday to a Queensland resort 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 remain in contention in the Ashes battle.
Yet, the Kent batsman asserted the messaging from the captain and head coach McCullum had remained in line with their prior tenure in charge.
"The atmosphere has been very positive, the same as always," said Crawley. "It's on maintaining positivity, playing our brand, with lots of freedom. It felt like we could do something special going into this game."
Australia Close of Rapid Series Victory
Crawley's wicket on day four was part of a crucial triple-strike by Australia spinner Nathan Lyon.
Lyon's three wickets in 20 deliveries – he also bowled Brook and Ben Stokes – left the chasing side six down for 207 in pursuit of a daunting target of 435.
Consequently, the home team need four wickets on the last day to secure an unassailable 3-0 lead with three matches played.
Defeat will extend England's winless run in Australia to 18 Tests and condemn them to a fourth successive away Ashes defeat.
The current battle will be completed in only 11 days of play – after England losing the initial matches in rapid time respectively.
The last time 1921, when the Australians completed victory in the UK in eight days, has the outcome of the Ashes urn been determined so quickly. The hosts have also triumphed in eleven days on two other occasions in the modern era.
"It's disheartening," admitted Crawley. "Our goal was to win the Ashes and now we are staring down the barrel at this point."
"There will still be plenty to play for and we'll definitely view it with that mindset," he continued.
"The challenge has been tough. Australia is a very, very good side. It was always going to be hard coming here to face them. They entered as the front-runners coming in to it have demonstrated their quality."
Ollie Pope's Place Under Scrutiny
Although the opener's innings in Adelaide likely secures doubts about his short-term place in the England team, Pope appears under threat for his position in the Melbourne Test on Boxing Day.
The Surrey batsman fell for 17 in England's second knock on day four, adding to his poor record versus Australia.
In 16 Ashes innings, Pope has never made a fifty and averages just 17.62.
Only one other English batsman in over a century – Amiss – has played as many times in the top six in the Ashes and returned a poorer average.
But, Crawley said any notion Pope is under the microscope originates with "you guys" – meaning the press – "not inside the camp."
"The squad is fully aware of his considerable talent," added he. "He has had a good year to be frank."
"He has played several excellent innings. It is talk from the outside. There is no chat of that nature on Ollie in the camp," Crawley concluded.
