The English opener Crawley suggested he had no knowledge of statements from skipper Stokes about the team environment as no place for "those lacking fortitude".
Stokes delivered this message in several conversations in the wake of his team's defeat in the second match of the Ashes versus Australia earlier this month.
In the lead-up to the third Test, where the visitors now face defeat with a match to spare, the captain noted 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," remarked Stokes.
However, after the opener scored 85 on the penultimate day in the third Test, he commented: "I missed those remarks."
"I didn't see and wasn't really looking out for it. We take anything stated in the press with some skepticism," he added.
Frank Discussions and Steady Philosophy
The captain made the "fragile individuals" comment subsequent to England suffered a loss in Brisbane to go two matches behind.
The England squad afterwards took a break to a Queensland resort in the gap between the second and the upcoming matches.
Prior to the Adelaide contest, Stokes revealed his players had held "raw" talks and he had urged them to "show a bit of dog" in their effort to remain alive in the Ashes battle.
Yet, Crawley stated the messaging from the captain and head coach Brendon McCullum had remained consistent with their previous tenure in leadership.
"It's been very positive, unchanged," said Crawley. "It's on maintaining positivity, play our way, with great liberty. We believed we could do something special entering this game."
The Hosts Close of Rapid Ashes Triumph
Crawley's dismissal on day four was part of a crucial triple-strike by Australia off-spinner Nathan Lyon.
The spinner's three wickets in 20 deliveries – including the wickets of Harry Brook and Ben Stokes – left England 207-6 in pursuit of a daunting target of 435.
Consequently, the home team need four wickets on Sunday's last day to move to an unassailable three-nil lead with three matches played.
Defeat would prolong the English team's drought in Australia to 18 consecutive matches and condemn them to a fourth straight overseas Ashes series loss.
The current battle is set to be decided in just 11 days of cricket – with England fell the initial matches in rapid time each.
Not since 1921, when Australia sealed a series win in the UK in eight days, has the outcome of the urn been determined so quickly. Australia have also triumphed in eleven days on two other instances in the modern era.
"It's disappointing," said the batsman. "Our goal was to win the Ashes and now we are staring down the barrel now."
"There remains plenty to play for and we will certainly approach it like that," he continued.
"The challenge has been tough. Australia is a formidable team. It was inevitably hard touring here to face them. They entered as the front-runners coming in to it they've proven why."
Ollie Pope's Place In Question
While Crawley's performance in the third Test likely secures questions about his short-term future in the side, Pope appears under threat for his spot in the Melbourne Test starting December 26th.
Pope fell for 17 in the team's second knock on day four, adding to his modest returns against the old enemy.
In sixteen Ashes knocks, the Surrey man has failed to score a half-century 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 recorded a poorer average.
However, Crawley said any notion Pope is under the microscope comes from "you guys" – referring to the press – "and not within the team."
"We all know of his considerable talent," added he. "He has had a productive year to be frank."
"He has produced some really good knocks. It is noise from the outside. There is no chat of that nature regarding Pope in the camp," he concluded.
