England opener Crawley has indicated he was not familiar with statements made by captain Stokes about the dressing room not being "those lacking fortitude".
The all-rounder delivered those words in multiple interviews in the wake of his team's defeat in the second match of the Ashes versus the Australians previously.
In the lead-up to the Adelaide Test, where the visitors are staring at a series loss at the earliest opportunity, Stokes noted he had allowed his sentiment to "drift around" among the playing group.
"I have completed all the talking over the past two days that I needed to have done," said Stokes.
However, after the opener scored a knock of 85 on the fourth day in the third Test, he commented: "I missed those remarks."
"I wasn't actively searching for it. We take everything that is said in the press with some skepticism," he added.
Frank Discussions and Steady Philosophy
The captain made the "weak men" comment subsequent to England suffered a loss in Brisbane to go 2-0 down.
The team subsequently took a holiday 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 asked them to "display some fight" in their battle to stay in contention in the Ashes battle.
Nevertheless, the Kent batsman asserted the messaging from the captain and head coach McCullum had stayed consistent with their previous three years in charge.
"It's been extremely upbeat, unchanged," noted Crawley. "It's on maintaining positivity, playing our brand, with great liberty. It felt like we could do an extraordinary feat going into this Test."
The Hosts Close of Rapid Series Victory
The opener's wicket on day four came during a crucial triple-strike by Australian off-spinner Nathan Lyon.
Lyon's triple strike in a short spell – he also bowled Brook and Ben Stokes – meant England 207-6 chasing a daunting total of 435.
Consequently, Australia require just four more wickets on the final day to secure an unassailable three-nil lead with three Tests.
A loss will extend the English team's winless run 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 play – after England fell the first two Tests in two and four days respectively.
The last time 1921, when Australia completed a series win 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 21st century.
"It's disappointing," said Crawley. "Our goal was to win the Ashes and now we are staring down the barrel at this point."
"There will still be significant pride at stake and we will definitely view it with that mindset," Crawley added.
"It's been tough. Australia is a very, very good side. It was inevitably hard touring 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 Crawley's performance in the third Test likely secures doubts about his short-term place in the side, Ollie Pope appears under threat for his spot in the fourth Test on Boxing Day.
The Surrey batsman fell for 17 in the team's second knock on day four, adding to his poor record versus the old enemy.
In sixteen Ashes knocks, the Surrey man has never made a half-century and boasts an average of 17.62.
Only one other England player in over a century – Dennis Amiss – has played an equal number of innings in the top six in Ashes Tests and returned a lower average.
But, Crawley said any notion Pope is under the microscope comes from "the media" – meaning the journalists – "and not within the team."
"The squad is fully aware how good of a player he is," added Crawley. "Ollie has enjoyed a productive year to be frank."
"He has produced several excellent innings. It is talk from the outside. There's no chat like that regarding Pope in the camp," Crawley finished.
