The English opener Crawley has indicated he had no knowledge of comments from skipper Ben Stokes regarding the team environment not being "weak men".
The all-rounder delivered this message in multiple interviews in the wake of his team's loss in the second Ashes versus the Australians earlier this month.
Ahead of the Adelaide Test, where England are staring at defeat at the earliest opportunity, the captain stated he had allowed his sentiment to "circulate freely" among the playing group.
"I've done all the talking over the past two days that I needed to have done," said Stokes.
However, after the opener scored a knock of 85 on the fourth day in the third Test, he stated: "I missed those remarks."
"I wasn't actively searching for it. Our approach is to take everything that is said in the media with some skepticism," he added.
Frank Discussions and Consistent Messaging
Stokes issued his "fragile individuals" observation after England suffered a loss in Brisbane to fall 2-0 down.
The England squad afterwards took a break to Noosa in the gap between the second and third Tests.
Prior to the Adelaide contest, he revealed his players had held "honest" talks and he had urged them to "show a bit of dog" in their battle to stay alive in the Ashes battle.
Nevertheless, the Kent batsman stated the messaging from the captain and coach Brendon McCullum had remained in line with their previous three years in charge.
"It's been extremely upbeat, unchanged," noted Crawley. "The focus is on maintaining positivity, play our way, with lots of freedom. It felt like we were capable of an extraordinary feat going into this Test."
Australia On the Verge of Rapid Series Victory
The opener's dismissal late on Saturday was part of a crucial triple-strike by Australian spinner Nathan Lyon.
The spinner's triple strike in a short spell – including the wickets of Brook and Stokes himself – left England six down for 207 in pursuit of a daunting total of 435.
Consequently, Australia require just four more wickets on the final day to secure an unassailable 3-0 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 away Ashes defeat.
This series is set to be decided in only 11 days of cricket – with England losing the first two Tests in rapid time each.
The last time 1921, when the Australians sealed victory in England in eight days, has the destination of the urn been decided so quickly. Australia have also triumphed in eleven days on two other instances in the 21st century.
"It's disheartening," said Crawley. "We came here to win the Ashes and now we are facing elimination now."
"There will still be plenty to play for and we'll definitely view it like that," he continued.
"It's been tough. Australia is a very, very good side. It was inevitably hard coming here to face them. They were the front-runners coming in to it they've proven why."
Ollie Pope's Place In Question
Although the opener's innings in Adelaide probably answers questions about his short-term place in the England team, Pope appears under threat for his position in the fourth Test on Boxing Day.
Pope was out for 17 runs in England's second knock on day four, adding to his poor record against the old enemy.
Across 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 featured an equal number of innings in the top six in Ashes Tests and recorded a poorer average.
However, Crawley insisted any notion Pope is being scrutinised comes from "the media" – referring to the press – "not inside the camp."
"We all know of his considerable talent," said Crawley. "He has had a productive year if I'm honest."
"He has played several excellent innings. This is noise externally. There is no chat of that nature regarding Pope in the camp," he finished.
