England opener Crawley suggested he had no knowledge of comments made by captain Ben Stokes about the team environment as no place for "weak men".
Stokes delivered those words in several conversations in the wake of his team's defeat in the second Ashes series versus Australia earlier this month.
Ahead of the Adelaide Test, where England now face defeat at the earliest opportunity, Stokes stated he had let his message to "drift around" within the squad.
"I've done all the talking over the past two days that I required," said the England leader.
However, following Crawley scored 85 on the fourth day in the third Test, he stated: "I didn't see that."
"I didn't see and wasn't really looking out for it. Our approach is to take everything that is said in the media with some skepticism," Crawley continued.
Frank Discussions and Consistent Messaging
Stokes made the "weak men" observation subsequent to England were beaten in the second Test to fall two matches behind.
The team afterwards went on a holiday to Noosa between the second and the upcoming matches.
Before the Adelaide contest, Stokes said his team had held "honest" conversations and he had urged them to "show a bit of dog" in their effort to remain in contention in the series.
Yet, the Kent batsman asserted the guidance from the captain and head coach McCullum had stayed consistent with their prior tenure in charge.
"It's been very positive, the same as always," noted Crawley. "The focus is on maintaining positivity, play our way, with lots of freedom. We believed we could do an extraordinary feat going into this Test."
Australia On the Verge of Historic Ashes Triumph
The opener'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 Harry Brook and Stokes himself – left England six down for 207 in pursuit of a notional total of 435 runs.
This means, Australia require just four more wickets on the final day to secure an insurmountable three-nil lead with three Tests.
A loss will extend the English team's winless run in this country to 18 consecutive matches and condemn them to a fourth straight overseas Ashes loss.
The current battle is set to be decided in only 11 days of cricket – after England losing the initial matches in rapid time each.
The last time 1921, when the Australians sealed a series win in England in eight days, has the destination of the Ashes urn been decided so quickly. Australia have also triumphed in eleven days on two other instances in the 21st century.
"It's disappointing," said Crawley. "We came here to regain the Ashes and we're facing elimination at this point."
"There will still be significant pride at stake and we'll definitely view it with that mindset," he continued.
"The challenge has been tough. They're a formidable side. It was always going to be tough touring here to face them. They entered as the favourites and have demonstrated their quality."
Pope's Place In Question
Although the opener's innings in Adelaide likely secures doubts about his immediate place in the side, Ollie Pope appears 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 day four, extending his poor record against Australia.
In sixteen Ashes knocks, the Surrey man has failed to score a half-century and averages 17.62.
Only one other English batsman in over a century – Dennis Amiss – has played as many times in the top order in the Ashes and recorded a poorer average.
But, Crawley insisted any notion his teammate is under the microscope originates with "the media" – meaning the press – "and not within the team."
"We all know how good of a player he is," said he. "He has had a productive year if I'm honest."
"He has produced several excellent innings. This is noise from the outside. There is no chat like that on Ollie amongst the players," Crawley finished.
