England opening batter Crawley suggested he had no knowledge of comments from captain Ben Stokes about the team environment as no place for "weak men".
Stokes made this message in multiple conversations in the wake of England's loss in the second Ashes against Australia earlier this month.
In the lead-up to the Adelaide Test, where England now face a series loss with a match to spare, the captain noted he had let his message to "circulate freely" within the playing group.
"I have completed the necessary discussions in recent days that I required," remarked Stokes.
But, following the opener made a knock of 85 on the fourth day in the third Test, he stated: "I didn't see that."
"I wasn't actively searching for it. Our approach is to take anything stated in the press with some skepticism," Crawley continued.
Frank Discussions and Steady Philosophy
The captain made the "weak men" observation after England were beaten in the second Test to fall two matches behind.
The England squad afterwards took a holiday to a Queensland resort in the gap between the second and third matches.
Before this match, Stokes revealed his team had held "honest" talks and he had urged them to "show a bit of dog" in their effort to remain in contention in the series.
Nevertheless, Crawley asserted the messaging from the captain and coach McCullum had stayed in line with their prior three years in leadership.
"It's been extremely upbeat, the same as always," said the opener. "The focus is just trying to be optimistic, playing our brand, with great liberty. We believed we could do something special going into this Test."
Australia On the Verge of Rapid Series Victory
Crawley's dismissal late on Saturday was part of a crucial three-wicket burst by Australian spinner Nathan Lyon.
Lyon's three wickets in a short spell – including the wickets of Brook and Stokes himself – meant England 207-6 in pursuit of a notional target of 435 runs.
This means, Australia need four wickets on Sunday's last day to secure an insurmountable 3-0 advantage with three matches played.
A loss would prolong England's drought in Australia to 18 consecutive matches and condemn them to a fourth successive overseas Ashes defeat.
The current battle will be completed in just 11 days of cricket – with England fell the initial matches in two and four days each.
Not since 1921, when Australia sealed a series win in the UK in eight days, has the destination of the Ashes urn been determined more swiftly. Australia have also won in eleven days on two other occasions in the modern era.
"This is disheartening," said the batsman. "Our goal was to regain the Ashes and now we are staring down the barrel now."
"There remains plenty to play for and we'll definitely view it like that," Crawley added.
"The challenge has been difficult. Australia is a very, very good team. It was always going to be tough touring here against them. They were the front-runners and they've proven why."
Pope's Position Under Scrutiny
While Crawley's performance in Adelaide probably answers questions about his immediate place in the side, Pope looks under immense pressure for his position in the Melbourne Test starting December 26th.
The Surrey batsman fell for 17 in England's second innings on Saturday, extending his modest returns versus the old enemy.
Across sixteen Ashes knocks, the Surrey man has failed to score a fifty 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 six in Ashes Tests and recorded a poorer average.
However, the opener said any suggestion Pope is being scrutinised comes from "the media" – meaning the journalists – "and not within the team."
"We all know of his considerable talent," said he. "He has had a productive year if I'm honest."
"He has played some really good knocks. This is noise externally. There's no discussion of that nature regarding Pope amongst the players," he concluded.
