England opener Crawley has indicated he had no knowledge of statements made by skipper Stokes regarding the team environment as no place for "weak men".
Stokes delivered those words in several conversations in the wake of England's defeat in the second Ashes series versus Australia previously.
Ahead of the third Test, where England are staring at a series loss at the earliest opportunity, the captain noted he had allowed his sentiment to "drift around" among the squad.
"I've done all the talking in recent days that I needed to have done," remarked Stokes.
However, after the opener made a knock of 85 on the fourth day in the third Test, he stated: "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 press with a pinch of salt," Crawley continued.
Raw Conversations and Consistent Messaging
The captain made the "fragile individuals" observation after England suffered a loss in the second Test to go two matches behind.
The England squad subsequently went on a break to a Queensland resort between the second and the upcoming matches.
Prior to the Adelaide contest, he said his players had held "honest" talks and he had urged them to "show a bit of dog" in their battle to remain in contention in the series.
Yet, Crawley stated the messaging from the captain and coach McCullum had stayed consistent with their previous three years in charge.
"The atmosphere has been extremely upbeat, the same as always," noted Crawley. "It's just trying to be optimistic, playing our brand, with great liberty. It felt like we were capable of something special entering this Test."
Australia Close of Historic Series Victory
The opener's dismissal on day four came during a crucial three-wicket burst by Australian spinner Lyon.
Lyon's triple strike in a short spell – including the wickets of Harry Brook and Ben Stokes – left England 207-6 chasing a notional total of 435 runs.
This means, the home team require just four more wickets on Sunday's final day to secure an insurmountable 3-0 lead with three Tests.
Defeat will extend England's drought in this country to 18 Tests and ensure a fourth successive away Ashes series loss.
This series will be completed in only 11 days of cricket – with England losing the initial matches in two and four days each.
Not since 1921, when Australia completed victory in England in eight days, has the destination of the Ashes urn been determined so quickly. The hosts have also won in 11 days on two other occasions in the 21st century.
"This is disappointing," admitted Crawley. "Our goal was to win the Ashes and we're staring down the barrel now."
"There will still be plenty to play for and we will 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 coming here against them. They were the front-runners coming in to it have demonstrated their quality."
Pope's Position Under Scrutiny
While the opener's performance in the third Test likely secures questions about his short-term place in the side, Pope appears under immense pressure for his spot in the fourth Test starting December 26th.
The Surrey batsman was out for 17 in the team's second innings on day four, adding to his modest returns versus Australia.
Across sixteen Ashes knocks, Pope has never made a fifty and boasts an average of just 17.62.
A solitary other England player in over a century – Amiss – has played as many times in the top order in the Ashes and returned a poorer average.
But, the opener insisted any notion Pope is under the microscope comes from "you guys" – referring to the press – "not inside the camp."
"We all know how good of a player he is," said Crawley. "Ollie has enjoyed a good year if I'm honest."
"He has produced several excellent innings. It is noise externally. There's no chat of that nature on Ollie in the camp," Crawley finished.
