England opening batter Crawley has indicated he had no knowledge of statements made by captain Stokes about the team environment not being "weak men".
The all-rounder delivered those words in several conversations following England's loss in the second Ashes versus the Australians previously.
In the lead-up to the Adelaide Test, where the visitors are staring at a series loss with a match to spare, the captain stated he had allowed his message to "circulate freely" among the playing group.
"I have completed all the talking in recent days that I needed to have done," remarked Stokes.
However, after Crawley 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. Our approach is to take everything that is said in the press with a pinch of salt," he added.
Raw Conversations and Steady Philosophy
Stokes issued his "weak men" comment after his side were beaten in Brisbane to go 2-0 down.
The England squad afterwards took a break to a Queensland resort in the gap between the second and third Tests.
Prior to this match, he said his players had held "raw" conversations and he had urged them to "show a bit of dog" in their battle to remain alive in the Ashes battle.
Yet, Crawley asserted the messaging from the captain and head coach Brendon McCullum had remained in line with their previous tenure in leadership.
"The atmosphere has been very positive, the same as always," noted Crawley. "The focus is just trying to be optimistic, playing our brand, with lots of freedom. We believed we could do something special going into this Test."
The Hosts Close of Rapid Series Victory
The opener's wicket on day four was part of a crucial three-wicket burst by Australian off-spinner Nathan Lyon.
The spinner's triple strike in 20 deliveries – he also bowled Harry Brook and Ben Stokes – meant the chasing side 207-6 in pursuit of a notional total of 435 runs.
This means, the home team require four wickets on the final day to move to an unassailable three-nil lead after three matches played.
A loss would prolong England's drought in Australia to 18 Tests and condemn them to a fourth straight away Ashes series defeat.
The current battle will be completed in only eleven days of cricket – after England losing the first two Tests in rapid time each.
The last time 1921, when the Australians completed a series win in England in eight days, has the outcome of the urn been determined more swiftly. Australia have also won in eleven days on two other instances in the 21st century.
"It's disheartening," admitted Crawley. "We came here to win the Ashes and now we are staring down the barrel now."
"There remains significant pride at stake and we will definitely view it with that mindset," Crawley added.
"It's been tough. They're a formidable team. It was always going to be hard touring here to face them. They were the front-runners and they've proven why."
Ollie Pope's Position In Question
Although Crawley's performance in Adelaide likely secures doubts about his immediate place in the side, Ollie Pope appears under threat for his spot in the Melbourne Test starting December 26th.
Pope fell for 17 runs in the team's second innings on day four, extending his modest returns versus the old enemy.
In 16 Ashes innings, the Surrey man has failed to score a half-century and boasts an average of 17.62.
Only one other English batsman in over a century – Dennis Amiss – has played an equal number of innings in the top order in the Ashes and returned a poorer average.
But, the opener said any suggestion Pope is being scrutinised comes from "you guys" – referring to the press – "and not within the team."
"We all know of his considerable talent," said he. "Ollie has enjoyed a productive year if I'm honest."
"He has produced several excellent innings. This is noise externally. There's no chat of that nature regarding Pope amongst the players," he finished.
