The English opener Crawley suggested he had no knowledge of comments made by captain Stokes regarding 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 against Australia earlier this month.
In the lead-up to the third Test, where England now face defeat at the earliest opportunity, the captain noted he had let his sentiment to "circulate freely" within the playing group.
"I have completed all the talking over the past two days that I required," remarked the England leader.
But, after the opener made a knock of 85 on the penultimate day in Adelaide, he stated: "I didn't see that."
"I wasn't actively searching for it. We take anything stated in the press with a pinch of salt," he added.
Raw Conversations and Steady Philosophy
The captain made the "fragile individuals" observation subsequent to England were beaten in Brisbane to fall 2-0 down.
The team afterwards went on a break to Noosa in the gap between the second and the upcoming Tests.
Before the Adelaide contest, Stokes said his players had held "raw" conversations and he had asked them to "display some fight" in their effort to stay in contention in the series.
Yet, the Kent batsman stated the messaging from Stokes and coach McCullum had remained consistent with their previous three years in leadership.
"It's been extremely upbeat, the same as always," noted Crawley. "It's on maintaining positivity, playing our brand, with great liberty. It felt like we were capable of something special going into this game."
The Hosts On the Verge of Rapid Series Victory
The opener's wicket late on Saturday was part of a crucial triple-strike by Australia off-spinner Lyon.
Lyon's triple strike in 20 deliveries – including the wickets of Harry Brook and Ben Stokes – left the chasing side 207-6 in pursuit of a daunting total of 435 runs.
Consequently, the home team require just four more wickets on Sunday's last day to secure an insurmountable three-nil advantage after three matches played.
A loss will extend England's drought in this country to 18 consecutive matches and condemn them to a fourth successive overseas Ashes defeat.
The current battle is set to be decided in only eleven days of cricket – with England fell the initial matches in rapid time each.
The last time 1921, when the Australians sealed victory in England in eight days, has the destination 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 disappointing," admitted Crawley. "We came here to regain the Ashes and now we are facing elimination at this point."
"There remains significant pride at stake and we'll definitely view it like that," he continued.
"The challenge has been tough. They're a very, very good side. It was inevitably hard touring here to face them. They entered as the favourites and have demonstrated their quality."
Ollie Pope's Position Under Scrutiny
While Crawley's innings in the third Test likely secures questions about his immediate future in the side, Pope appears under threat for his position in the fourth Test on Boxing Day.
Pope fell for 17 runs in the team's second knock on Saturday, adding to his poor record versus Australia.
Across sixteen Ashes knocks, 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 returned a lower average.
But, Crawley said any suggestion Pope is being scrutinised originates with "you guys" – referring to the journalists – "and not within the team."
"We all know how good of a player he is," said he. "He has had a productive year if I'm honest."
"He has played several excellent innings. This is talk externally. There's no chat of that nature on Ollie amongst the players," Crawley concluded.
