England opening batter Crawley has indicated he had no knowledge of comments made by skipper Ben Stokes regarding the dressing room as no place for "weak men".
Stokes made those words in several interviews in the wake of England's loss in the second match of the Ashes versus Australia earlier this month.
Ahead of the third Test, where England now face defeat at the earliest opportunity, Stokes noted he had allowed his message to "circulate freely" within the playing group.
"I have completed all the talking in recent days that I needed to have done," said the England leader.
However, after the opener scored a knock of 85 on the fourth day in Adelaide, he commented: "I didn't see that."
"I didn't see and wasn't really looking out for it. We take everything that is said in the media with some skepticism," Crawley continued.
Frank Discussions and Steady Philosophy
The captain issued his "weak men" observation after England suffered a loss in Brisbane to go two matches behind.
The team subsequently went on a holiday to Noosa in the gap between the second and third matches.
Prior to the Adelaide contest, he said his players had held "honest" talks and he had asked them to "display some fight" in their effort to stay in contention in the series.
Nevertheless, the Kent batsman asserted the guidance from Stokes and head coach Brendon McCullum had stayed in line with their previous three years in charge.
"It's been extremely upbeat, the same as always," noted the opener. "The focus is on maintaining positivity, playing our brand, with great liberty. It felt like we were capable of an extraordinary feat going into this Test."
The Hosts Close of Rapid Series Victory
The opener's wicket late on Saturday came during a decisive triple-strike by Australian off-spinner Nathan Lyon.
The spinner's three wickets in a short spell – including the wickets of Brook and Ben Stokes – meant the chasing side 207-6 chasing a daunting total of 435 runs.
Consequently, the home team need four wickets on the last day to secure an unassailable 3-0 advantage after three Tests.
Defeat will extend the English team's drought in this country to 18 consecutive matches and ensure a fourth successive overseas Ashes series defeat.
The current battle will be completed in only 11 days of play – after England fell the first two Tests in rapid time respectively.
The last time 1921, when the Australians completed victory in the UK in eight days, has the outcome of the Ashes urn been determined more swiftly. The hosts have also won in 11 days on two other instances in the modern era.
"This is disheartening," said Crawley. "We came here to win the Ashes and we're facing elimination at this point."
"There remains significant pride at stake and we'll certainly approach it like that," Crawley added.
"It's been difficult. Australia is a formidable side. It was always going to be tough touring here against them. They were the front-runners coming in to it they've proven why."
Pope's Position Under Scrutiny
While Crawley's performance in Adelaide likely secures doubts about his short-term place in the side, Ollie Pope appears under immense pressure for his position in the fourth Test starting December 26th.
Pope fell for 17 in the team's second knock on Saturday, extending his poor record versus Australia.
Across 16 Ashes innings, Pope has never made a fifty and boasts an average of 17.62.
A solitary other English batsman since 1900 – Dennis Amiss – has played as many times in the top order in the Ashes and recorded a lower average.
However, Crawley insisted any notion his teammate is under the microscope originates with "the media" – meaning the journalists – "not inside the camp."
"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. This is noise externally. There is no chat like that on Ollie in the camp," Crawley concluded.
