England opener Crawley suggested he was not familiar with comments made by skipper Ben Stokes about the team environment as no place for "weak men".
The all-rounder delivered those words in several conversations in the wake of his team's loss in the second Ashes versus Australia earlier this month.
In the lead-up to the third Test, where England now face defeat at the earliest opportunity, Stokes noted he had let his sentiment to "drift around" within the playing group.
"I have completed all the talking in recent days that I needed to have done," said the England leader.
However, following the opener scored 85 on the penultimate day in the third Test, he stated: "I didn't see that."
"I wasn't actively searching for it. We take anything stated in the press with some skepticism," he added.
Frank Discussions and Steady Philosophy
Stokes made the "weak men" comment subsequent to England were beaten in Brisbane to fall two matches behind.
The team afterwards took a holiday to a Queensland resort in the gap between the second and the upcoming matches.
Before this match, he said his players had held "raw" conversations and he had urged them to "show a bit of dog" in their effort to stay in contention in the series.
Nevertheless, Crawley stated the messaging from the captain and coach McCullum had stayed in line with their prior three years in leadership.
"The atmosphere has been very positive, unchanged," noted the opener. "The focus is just trying to be optimistic, playing our brand, with lots of freedom. It felt like we could do an extraordinary feat going into this game."
Australia On the Verge of Rapid Ashes Triumph
The opener's dismissal late on Saturday came during a crucial triple-strike by Australia off-spinner Lyon.
Lyon's triple strike in 20 deliveries – he also bowled Harry Brook and Ben Stokes – left the chasing side six down for 207 in pursuit of a notional target of 435 runs.
This means, Australia require four wickets on the final day to move to an unassailable three-nil advantage after three matches played.
A loss will extend the English team's drought in this country to 18 consecutive matches and ensure a fourth successive away Ashes series defeat.
This series is set to be decided in just 11 days of cricket – with England losing the initial matches in two and four days each.
Not since 1921, when Australia completed victory in the UK in eight days, has the destination of the Ashes urn been determined more swiftly. The hosts have also triumphed in eleven days on two other occasions in the 21st century.
"It's disheartening," admitted the batsman. "We came here to regain the Ashes and we're facing elimination at this point."
"There remains plenty to play for and we'll certainly approach it like that," he continued.
"It's been difficult. They're a formidable side. It was inevitably hard touring here to face them. They entered as the front-runners coming in to it they've proven why."
Ollie Pope's Place Under Scrutiny
Although Crawley's performance in the third Test likely secures doubts about his short-term future in the England team, Ollie Pope appears under immense pressure for his spot in the Melbourne Test starting December 26th.
The Surrey batsman was out for 17 in England's second knock on day four, adding to his modest returns versus the old enemy.
Across 16 Ashes innings, the Surrey man has never made a fifty and boasts an average of just 17.62.
Only one other England player since 1900 – Amiss – has featured an equal number of innings in the top order in Ashes Tests and recorded a poorer average.
However, the opener insisted any suggestion Pope is being scrutinised originates with "the media" – meaning the press – "and not within the team."
"We all know how good of a player he is," added he. "Ollie has enjoyed a productive year to be frank."
"He has produced several excellent innings. It is talk from the outside. There is no discussion of that nature on Ollie amongst the players," Crawley finished.
