The English opener Crawley has indicated he had no knowledge of comments made by captain Ben Stokes about the dressing room not being "weak men".
The all-rounder made those words in multiple interviews following England's loss in the second Ashes against Australia earlier this month.
In the lead-up to the Adelaide Test, where the visitors are staring at a series loss with a match to spare, the captain stated he had let his message to "circulate freely" within the squad.
"I have completed all the talking in recent days that I needed to have done," said the England leader.
But, following Crawley made 85 on the fourth day in Adelaide, he stated: "I didn't see that."
"I didn't see and wasn't really looking out for it. We take anything stated in the press with some skepticism," Crawley continued.
Raw Conversations and Consistent Messaging
The captain made the "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 a Queensland resort in the gap between the second and the upcoming matches.
Before the Adelaide contest, he revealed his team 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, Crawley stated the messaging from Stokes and head coach Brendon McCullum had remained consistent with their previous tenure in charge.
"The atmosphere has been extremely upbeat, the same as always," noted the opener. "It's just trying to be optimistic, playing our brand, with lots of freedom. We believed we were capable of something special going into this Test."
Australia Close of Historic Ashes Triumph
The opener's dismissal on day four was part of a crucial three-wicket burst by Australia spinner Nathan Lyon.
Lyon's triple strike in a short spell – he also bowled Harry Brook and Ben Stokes – left the chasing side six down for 207 chasing a daunting total of 435.
Consequently, the home team need just four more wickets on the last day to move to an insurmountable 3-0 lead with three matches played.
Defeat will extend the English team's drought in Australia to 18 consecutive matches and ensure a fourth successive away Ashes series defeat.
The current battle is set to be decided in only eleven days of cricket – with England fell 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 more swiftly. Australia have also triumphed in 11 days on two other occasions in the 21st century.
"This is disheartening," said the batsman. "We came here to regain the Ashes and now we are facing elimination now."
"There remains plenty to play for and we will definitely view it with that mindset," Crawley added.
"It's been difficult. They're a formidable side. It was inevitably hard coming here against them. They entered as the favourites coming in to it have demonstrated their quality."
Pope's Position In Question
While Crawley's performance in Adelaide likely secures doubts about his short-term place in the England team, Pope appears under immense pressure for his spot in the fourth Test on Boxing Day.
Pope was out for 17 runs in the team's second innings on day four, extending his modest returns against Australia.
In 16 Ashes innings, Pope has never made a half-century and averages 17.62.
Only one other English batsman in over a century – Dennis Amiss – has played as many times in the top order in the Ashes and returned a poorer average.
But, Crawley said any notion Pope is under the microscope comes from "the media" – referring to the press – "and not within the team."
"We all know of his considerable talent," added Crawley. "Ollie has enjoyed a productive year if I'm honest."
"He has produced some really good knocks. This is talk externally. There's no discussion like that regarding Pope amongst the players," Crawley concluded.
