The English opening batter Crawley suggested he had no knowledge of statements made by skipper Ben Stokes regarding the dressing room as no place for "weak men".
The all-rounder made this message in multiple interviews following England's defeat in the second match of the Ashes series versus the Australians earlier this month.
Ahead of the Adelaide Test, where England are staring at defeat with a match to spare, Stokes noted he had allowed his sentiment to "circulate freely" within the playing group.
"I have completed the necessary discussions over the past two days that I needed to have done," said the England leader.
However, following Crawley scored a knock of 85 on the penultimate 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 anything stated in the press 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 subsequently took a break to Noosa between the second and the upcoming matches.
Prior to this match, Stokes revealed his players had held "raw" conversations and he had asked them to "show a bit of dog" in their effort to stay alive in the Ashes battle.
Yet, the Kent batsman asserted the messaging from the captain and head coach Brendon McCullum had remained consistent with their prior tenure in charge.
"It's been very positive, the same as always," noted Crawley. "It's on maintaining positivity, playing our brand, with lots of freedom. We believed we were capable of something special going into this game."
The Hosts On the Verge of Rapid Series Victory
The opener's wicket on day four came during a crucial triple-strike by Australian spinner Lyon.
Lyon's three wickets in a short spell – he also bowled Brook and Ben Stokes – meant England 207-6 in pursuit of a daunting target of 435 runs.
This means, the home team require four wickets on Sunday's last day to secure an insurmountable three-nil lead after three matches played.
A loss would prolong England's drought in Australia to 18 consecutive matches and ensure a fourth successive away Ashes loss.
This series is set to be decided in only eleven days of cricket – after England losing the initial matches in two and four days respectively.
Not since 1921, when Australia sealed victory in England in eight days, has the destination of the urn been decided so quickly. The hosts have also won in 11 days on two other occasions in the 21st century.
"It's disheartening," admitted Crawley. "We came here to win the Ashes and now we are staring down the barrel now."
"There will still be significant pride at stake and we'll definitely view it with that mindset," Crawley added.
"The challenge has been difficult. They're a formidable team. It was always going to be tough coming here against them. They were the favourites and they've proven why."
Ollie Pope's Position In Question
While Crawley's innings in the third Test likely secures doubts about his short-term place in the England team, Pope looks under immense pressure for his spot in the Melbourne Test starting December 26th.
The Surrey batsman was out for 17 in the team's second knock on Saturday, extending his modest returns versus Australia.
Across sixteen Ashes knocks, Pope has failed to score a fifty and averages just 17.62.
A solitary other English batsman since 1900 – Amiss – has played an equal number of innings in the top order in the Ashes and returned a lower average.
But, Crawley said any suggestion his teammate is being scrutinised originates with "you guys" – referring to the press – "not inside the camp."
"The squad is fully aware of his considerable talent," said Crawley. "He has had a productive year to be frank."
"He has produced several excellent innings. It is noise externally. There's no discussion like that regarding Pope amongst the players," Crawley concluded.
