England opener Crawley suggested he was not familiar with statements from captain Stokes about the team environment as no place for "those lacking fortitude".
Stokes delivered those words in several interviews following his team's defeat in the second match of the Ashes against Australia previously.
In the lead-up to the Adelaide Test, where the visitors now face defeat with a match to spare, the captain noted he had allowed his message to "circulate freely" within the squad.
"I have completed the necessary discussions over the past two days that I required," said the England leader.
However, after Crawley made a knock of 85 on the penultimate day in Adelaide, he commented: "I missed those remarks."
"I wasn't actively searching for it. We take anything stated in the press with some skepticism," Crawley continued.
Frank Discussions and Consistent Messaging
Stokes issued his "weak men" comment subsequent to England suffered a loss in the second Test to fall two matches behind.
The team afterwards went on a break to a Queensland resort between the second and the upcoming Tests.
Before the Adelaide contest, he said his players had held "honest" conversations and he had urged them to "display some fight" in their battle to stay in contention in the series.
Nevertheless, Crawley stated the guidance from the captain and head coach Brendon McCullum had remained consistent with their previous three years in charge.
"The atmosphere has been very positive, the same as always," said Crawley. "The focus is on maintaining positivity, play our way, with great liberty. We believed we could do something special going into this game."
Australia Close of Rapid Series Victory
Crawley's wicket on day four was part of a decisive three-wicket burst by Australia off-spinner Lyon.
Lyon's triple strike in 20 deliveries – he also bowled Brook and Stokes himself – left England six down for 207 chasing a notional total of 435.
This means, Australia need four wickets on the final day to move to an insurmountable 3-0 lead with three matches played.
Defeat will extend England's winless run in Australia to 18 Tests and condemn them to a fourth successive away Ashes series loss.
The current battle is set to be decided 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 Ashes urn been determined so quickly. The hosts have also triumphed in 11 days on two other occasions in the modern era.
"This is disappointing," admitted Crawley. "Our goal was to win the Ashes and we're 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 very, very good side. It was inevitably tough touring here against them. They entered as the front-runners and have demonstrated their quality."
Pope's Position Under Scrutiny
While Crawley's performance in the third Test likely secures questions about his immediate place in the side, Ollie Pope appears under threat for his spot in the fourth Test starting December 26th.
The Surrey batsman fell for 17 in England's second innings on Saturday, extending his modest returns against the old enemy.
In 16 Ashes innings, the Surrey man has never made a half-century and boasts an average of just 17.62.
Only one other English batsman since 1900 – Amiss – has played an equal number of innings in the top order in the Ashes and returned a poorer average.
However, the opener insisted any suggestion his teammate is being scrutinised originates with "the media" – referring to the press – "not inside the camp."
"We all know how good of a player he is," said Crawley. "Ollie has enjoyed a productive year to be frank."
"He has played several excellent innings. It is noise externally. There's no chat like that on Ollie in the camp," Crawley finished.
