England opening batter Crawley has indicated he was not familiar with statements from skipper Stokes regarding the team environment as no place for "weak men".
Stokes delivered this message in multiple interviews following England's defeat in the second match of the Ashes against Australia earlier this month.
In the lead-up to the Adelaide Test, where England now face defeat with a match to spare, Stokes stated he had let his sentiment to "circulate freely" among the squad.
"I've done the necessary discussions in recent days that I needed to have done," said the England leader.
However, after Crawley made 85 on the fourth day in the third Test, 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 media with a pinch of salt," he added.
Raw Conversations and Consistent Messaging
The captain issued his "fragile individuals" observation subsequent to his side were beaten in Brisbane to go two matches behind.
The England squad afterwards took a holiday to Noosa in the gap between the second and the upcoming Tests.
Before the Adelaide contest, Stokes said his players had held "raw" talks and he had urged them to "show a bit of dog" in their battle to remain alive in the series.
Yet, Crawley asserted the messaging from Stokes and head coach McCullum had stayed consistent with their prior tenure in leadership.
"The atmosphere has been very positive, the same as always," said the opener. "It's just trying to be optimistic, playing our brand, with great liberty. It felt like we were capable of something special going into this Test."
The Hosts On the Verge of Rapid Series Victory
Crawley's dismissal on day four was part of a crucial triple-strike by Australian spinner Lyon.
The spinner's three wickets in a short spell – he also bowled Harry Brook and Stokes himself – meant the chasing side 207-6 in pursuit of a daunting total of 435 runs.
This means, the home team require just four more wickets on the final day to move to an insurmountable 3-0 advantage after three matches played.
A loss would prolong England's winless run in Australia to 18 consecutive matches and ensure a fourth straight away Ashes defeat.
The current battle will be completed in only eleven days of play – after England fell the initial matches in rapid time respectively.
Not since 1921, when Australia completed a series win in the UK in eight days, has the destination of the Ashes urn been decided more swiftly. Australia have also won in 11 days on two other instances in the modern era.
"It's disheartening," said the batsman. "Our goal was to win the Ashes and we're facing elimination at this point."
"There will still be significant pride at stake and we will definitely view it like that," Crawley added.
"It's been difficult. They're a very, very good team. It was always going to be hard touring here against them. They were the front-runners and have demonstrated their quality."
Ollie Pope's Place Under Scrutiny
Although the opener's innings in the third Test probably answers questions about his immediate future in the England team, Ollie Pope appears under immense pressure for his position in the Melbourne Test starting December 26th.
Pope fell for 17 runs in the team's second knock on day four, extending his modest returns versus Australia.
Across 16 Ashes innings, the Surrey man has never made a fifty and boasts an average of 17.62.
A solitary other English batsman since 1900 – Dennis Amiss – has featured an equal number of innings in the top six in the Ashes and recorded a poorer average.
But, the opener said any notion Pope is under the microscope comes from "the media" – referring to the press – "and not within the team."
"The squad is fully aware how good of a player he is," added Crawley. "He has had a good year if I'm honest."
"He has played several excellent innings. It is noise externally. There's no discussion like that regarding Pope amongst the players," Crawley concluded.
