The English opening batter Crawley suggested he had no knowledge of statements made by captain Ben Stokes regarding the team environment not being "weak men".
The all-rounder made this message in multiple interviews in the wake of his team's loss in the second Ashes series against Australia earlier this month.
Ahead of the third Test, where the visitors now face a series loss at the earliest opportunity, the captain noted he had let his sentiment to "drift around" within the squad.
"I've done the necessary discussions over the past two days that I required," said Stokes.
But, after the opener made 85 on the penultimate day in the third Test, he commented: "I missed those remarks."
"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," he added.
Frank Discussions and Consistent Messaging
The captain issued his "weak men" comment subsequent to his side were beaten in Brisbane to go two matches behind.
The England squad afterwards went on a break to Noosa in the gap between the second and third matches.
Prior to the Adelaide contest, Stokes 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.
Yet, the Kent batsman stated the guidance from Stokes and coach Brendon McCullum had stayed in line with their previous three years in charge.
"It's been extremely upbeat, unchanged," noted Crawley. "It's just trying to be optimistic, playing our brand, with lots of freedom. It felt like we were capable of something special going into this Test."
The Hosts On the Verge of Rapid Series Victory
The opener's wicket on day four came during a decisive three-wicket burst by Australia spinner Nathan Lyon.
The spinner's triple strike in a short spell – including the wickets of Brook and Stokes himself – meant the chasing side 207-6 in pursuit of a notional total of 435 runs.
This means, the home team need just four more wickets on Sunday's last day to secure an unassailable three-nil lead with three Tests.
A loss would prolong England's winless run in Australia to 18 Tests and condemn them to a fourth successive away Ashes defeat.
This series will be completed in only 11 days of cricket – after England losing the initial matches in rapid time each.
Not since 1921, when the Australians sealed a series win in the UK in eight days, has the destination of the urn been decided so quickly. The hosts have also won in eleven days on two other occasions in the 21st century.
"This is disheartening," admitted Crawley. "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," he continued.
"It's been difficult. They're a very, very good team. It was inevitably tough coming here against them. They were the front-runners and have demonstrated their quality."
Ollie Pope's Position In Question
Although Crawley's performance in Adelaide probably answers questions about his short-term future in the England team, Ollie Pope looks under threat for his position in the Melbourne Test on Boxing Day.
The Surrey batsman fell for 17 runs in the team's second knock on Saturday, adding to his poor record against the old enemy.
In 16 Ashes innings, the Surrey man has failed to score a fifty and boasts an average of 17.62.
Only one other England player in over a century – Dennis Amiss – has played as many times in the top order in the Ashes and returned a poorer average.
But, the opener insisted any suggestion his teammate is under the microscope comes from "the media" – referring to the press – "and not within the team."
"The squad is fully aware how good of a player he is," added he. "He has had a good year if I'm honest."
"He has produced several excellent innings. This is noise externally. There's no discussion like that on Ollie in the camp," Crawley concluded.
