England opener Crawley has indicated he had no knowledge of comments made by captain Ben Stokes about the dressing room as no place for "weak men".
The all-rounder made those words in several conversations following his team's defeat in the second Ashes against the Australians earlier this month.
Ahead of the Adelaide Test, where the visitors now face a series loss at the earliest opportunity, Stokes stated he had allowed his message to "drift around" within the squad.
"I have completed all the talking in recent days that I required," remarked the England leader.
But, following Crawley scored a knock of 85 on the penultimate 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," he added.
Frank Discussions and Consistent Messaging
The captain made the "fragile individuals" comment subsequent to England were beaten in Brisbane to go two matches behind.
The England squad subsequently went on a break to Noosa between the second and the upcoming matches.
Prior to the Adelaide contest, he revealed his players had held "raw" conversations and he had asked them to "display some fight" in their effort to stay alive in the Ashes battle.
Nevertheless, Crawley stated the guidance from the captain and coach Brendon McCullum had stayed consistent with their previous tenure in leadership.
"It's been extremely upbeat, the same as always," noted Crawley. "The focus is just trying to be optimistic, play our way, with lots of freedom. It felt like we were capable of something special going into this Test."
The Hosts On the Verge of Rapid Series Victory
The opener's wicket late on Saturday came during a crucial triple-strike by Australia spinner Nathan Lyon.
The spinner's three wickets in 20 deliveries – he also bowled Harry Brook and Ben Stokes – left the chasing side six down for 207 chasing a daunting total of 435 runs.
This means, the home team require just four more wickets on the last day to move to an insurmountable 3-0 advantage after three Tests.
A loss will extend England's winless run in Australia to 18 consecutive matches and condemn them to a fourth successive away Ashes defeat.
The current battle is set to be decided in only eleven days of cricket – with England fell the first two Tests in two and four days each.
The last time 1921, when Australia completed a series win in England in eight days, has the destination of the Ashes urn been decided so quickly. The hosts have also won in eleven days on two other occasions in the modern era.
"It's disheartening," said the batsman. "Our goal was to regain the Ashes and we're facing elimination now."
"There will still be significant pride at stake and we will certainly approach it with that mindset," Crawley added.
"It's been tough. Australia is a formidable team. It was always going to be tough coming here against them. They were the front-runners coming in to it they've proven why."
Ollie Pope's Position In Question
Although the opener's innings in Adelaide likely secures questions about his immediate future in the side, Ollie Pope appears under threat for his position in the Melbourne Test on Boxing Day.
Pope fell for 17 in England's second innings on day four, adding to his poor record versus Australia.
In sixteen Ashes knocks, Pope has failed to score a half-century and boasts an average of 17.62.
A solitary other English batsman in over a century – Amiss – has featured an equal number of innings in the top order in Ashes Tests and recorded a poorer average.
But, the opener insisted any suggestion Pope is under the microscope comes from "you guys" – referring to the journalists – "not inside the camp."
"We all know of his considerable talent," added Crawley. "He has had a good year to be frank."
"He has produced several excellent innings. It is talk externally. There is no chat of that nature regarding Pope amongst the players," Crawley finished.
