The English opener Crawley suggested he had no knowledge of statements made by captain Stokes regarding the dressing room as no place for "weak men".
The all-rounder made those words in several interviews in the wake of his team's loss in the second match of the Ashes against the Australians earlier this month.
Ahead of the third Test, where England now face defeat with a match to spare, the captain noted he had let his message to "drift around" within the squad.
"I have completed all the talking over the past two days that I needed to have done," said the England leader.
But, after Crawley made 85 on the fourth day in the third Test, he stated: "I missed those remarks."
"I wasn't actively searching for it. Our approach is to take anything stated in the media with a pinch of salt," Crawley continued.
Frank Discussions and Consistent Messaging
The captain issued his "weak men" observation subsequent to his side suffered a loss in the second Test to fall 2-0 down.
The England squad afterwards took a break to a Queensland resort in the gap between the second and third matches.
Before this match, Stokes revealed his team had held "raw" conversations and he had urged them to "show a bit of dog" in their effort to stay alive in the Ashes battle.
Nevertheless, the Kent batsman stated the messaging from the captain and head coach Brendon McCullum had remained consistent with their previous three years in charge.
"The atmosphere has been extremely upbeat, the same as always," noted Crawley. "The focus is just trying to be optimistic, playing our brand, with great liberty. We believed we were capable of an extraordinary feat going into this Test."
The Hosts On the Verge of Historic Series Victory
Crawley's wicket late on Saturday came during a decisive triple-strike by Australia off-spinner Nathan Lyon.
The spinner's triple strike in a short spell – including the wickets of Harry Brook and Ben Stokes – left the chasing side 207-6 in pursuit of a daunting total of 435.
Consequently, Australia require just four more wickets on Sunday's final day to secure an unassailable 3-0 lead with three matches played.
A loss will extend the English team's drought in this country to 18 Tests and condemn them to a fourth straight overseas Ashes defeat.
This series is set to be decided in only eleven days of cricket – after England losing the first two Tests in two and four days respectively.
The last time 1921, when the Australians sealed victory in England in eight days, has the destination of the urn been decided so quickly. The hosts have also triumphed in eleven days on two other occasions in the 21st century.
"This is disheartening," said Crawley. "Our goal was to regain the Ashes and we're facing elimination now."
"There remains plenty to play for and we'll definitely view it with that mindset," Crawley added.
"The challenge has been difficult. Australia is a formidable side. It was always going to be hard touring here to face them. They were the front-runners and have demonstrated their quality."
Pope's Position In Question
While Crawley's innings in Adelaide likely secures questions about his short-term future in the side, Ollie Pope looks under immense pressure for his position in the Melbourne Test on Boxing Day.
Pope fell for 17 in the team's second innings on Saturday, extending his modest returns against the old enemy.
Across sixteen Ashes knocks, the Surrey man has failed to score a half-century and averages 17.62.
Only one other English batsman since 1900 – Dennis Amiss – has featured an equal number of innings in the top six in Ashes Tests and recorded a lower average.
But, Crawley said any suggestion his teammate is under the microscope comes from "the media" – meaning the press – "and not within the team."
"The squad is fully aware of his considerable talent," added he. "He has had a good year to be frank."
"He has produced some really good knocks. It is talk externally. There's no discussion of that nature regarding Pope in the camp," Crawley concluded.
