The English opener Crawley suggested he was not familiar with statements from captain Stokes about the team environment as no place for "those lacking fortitude".
Stokes made this message in multiple interviews following his team's loss in the second match of the Ashes series against Australia previously.
Ahead of the third Test, where England now face a series loss with a match to spare, Stokes stated he had let his sentiment to "drift around" within the squad.
"I have completed the necessary discussions over the past two days that I needed to have done," said Stokes.
However, after Crawley scored 85 on the fourth day in Adelaide, he stated: "I missed those remarks."
"I didn't see and wasn't really looking out for it. We take anything stated in the media with some skepticism," Crawley continued.
Raw Conversations and Consistent Messaging
Stokes issued his "fragile individuals" comment after England suffered a loss in Brisbane to go two matches behind.
The England squad subsequently took a break to a Queensland resort between the second and third Tests.
Prior to this match, Stokes revealed his team had held "raw" conversations and he had urged them to "show a bit of dog" in their battle to remain in contention in the Ashes battle.
Yet, the Kent batsman asserted 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," said Crawley. "It's on maintaining positivity, playing our brand, with lots of freedom. It felt like we could do something special going into this game."
Australia Close of Rapid Ashes Triumph
Crawley's wicket on day four came during a decisive three-wicket burst by Australia 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.
This means, Australia need just four more wickets on the final day to secure an unassailable 3-0 advantage with three matches played.
A loss will extend England's winless run 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 just 11 days of cricket – with England fell the first two Tests in two and four days each.
Not since 1921, when Australia completed a series win in England in eight days, has the destination of the urn been determined so quickly. Australia have also triumphed in 11 days on two other instances in the modern era.
"It's disheartening," admitted the batsman. "Our goal was to regain the Ashes and we're staring down the barrel at this point."
"There will still be plenty to play for and we'll definitely view it like that," Crawley added.
"It's been difficult. They're a very, very good team. It was inevitably hard touring here to face them. They entered as the favourites and have demonstrated their quality."
Pope's Position Under Scrutiny
While Crawley's innings in Adelaide likely secures questions about his short-term future in the England team, Ollie Pope appears under immense pressure for his spot in the fourth Test starting December 26th.
The Surrey batsman fell for 17 in England's second innings on Saturday, adding to his poor record versus Australia.
In sixteen Ashes knocks, the Surrey man has failed to score a fifty and averages 17.62.
Only one other England player since 1900 – Dennis Amiss – has played as many times in the top order in the Ashes and returned a lower average.
However, the opener insisted any notion his teammate is being scrutinised comes from "you guys" – meaning the press – "not inside the camp."
"We all know how good of a player he is," added Crawley. "Ollie has enjoyed a productive year if I'm honest."
"He has played several excellent innings. It is talk externally. There is no discussion of that nature on Ollie in the camp," Crawley concluded.
