The English opening batter Crawley suggested he had no knowledge of comments from skipper Ben Stokes regarding the team environment as no place for "those lacking fortitude".
Stokes delivered this message in several conversations in the wake of England's defeat in the second Ashes series versus the Australians previously.
Ahead of the Adelaide Test, where the visitors are staring at a series loss at the earliest opportunity, the captain stated he had allowed his message to "circulate freely" within the squad.
"I've done the necessary discussions in recent days that I needed to have done," said Stokes.
However, after Crawley scored a knock of 85 on the fourth day in Adelaide, 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," Crawley continued.
Frank Discussions and Steady Philosophy
The captain issued his "weak men" observation subsequent to his side suffered a loss in Brisbane to go 2-0 down.
The England squad subsequently took a holiday to a Queensland resort between the second and the upcoming Tests.
Before the Adelaide contest, Stokes revealed his team had held "honest" conversations and he had urged them to "display some fight" in their effort to stay alive in the series.
Nevertheless, Crawley asserted the guidance from the captain and coach McCullum had stayed in line with their prior tenure in leadership.
"The atmosphere has been extremely upbeat, the same as always," noted the opener. "The focus is on maintaining positivity, play our way, with lots of freedom. We believed we were capable of an extraordinary feat entering this game."
Australia On the Verge of Rapid Ashes Triumph
Crawley's dismissal on day four came during a crucial three-wicket burst by Australia spinner Lyon.
Lyon's three wickets in a short spell – he also bowled Harry Brook and Stokes himself – meant the chasing side six down for 207 chasing a daunting total of 435.
Consequently, the home team need four wickets on the final day to move to an insurmountable three-nil advantage after three Tests.
Defeat would prolong England's winless run in Australia to 18 consecutive matches and condemn them to a fourth successive overseas Ashes series defeat.
This series is set to be decided in just 11 days of play – with England losing the initial matches in rapid time respectively.
Not since 1921, when Australia sealed victory in the UK in eight days, has the outcome of the Ashes urn been determined so quickly. The hosts have also won in 11 days on two other instances in the modern era.
"This is disheartening," said the batsman. "Our goal was to regain the Ashes and we're facing elimination now."
"There will still be plenty to play for and we will certainly approach it with that mindset," he continued.
"It's been difficult. They're a very, very good team. It was inevitably hard touring here to face them. They were the front-runners coming in to it have demonstrated their quality."
Ollie Pope's Position Under Scrutiny
Although the opener's innings in Adelaide probably answers questions about his short-term future in the England team, Pope appears under immense pressure for his spot in the Melbourne Test starting December 26th.
Pope was out for 17 in England's second innings on day four, adding to his modest returns against the old enemy.
In 16 Ashes innings, Pope has failed to score a half-century and boasts an average of 17.62.
Only one other English batsman since 1900 – Dennis Amiss – has featured as many times in the top six in Ashes Tests and returned a lower average.
However, Crawley said any suggestion Pope is being scrutinised comes from "the media" – referring to the press – "not inside the camp."
"The squad is fully aware how good of a player he is," added he. "Ollie has enjoyed a good year if I'm honest."
"He has played some really good knocks. It is talk externally. There's no discussion of that nature on Ollie amongst the players," he finished.
