England opener Crawley has indicated he was not familiar with comments from skipper Ben Stokes regarding the dressing room not being "those lacking fortitude".
The all-rounder made those words in multiple conversations following his team's defeat in the second Ashes against the Australians earlier this month.
Ahead of the Adelaide 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 have completed all the talking in recent days that I needed to have done," remarked the England leader.
But, after the opener made 85 on the fourth day in Adelaide, he stated: "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 press with some skepticism," he added.
Raw Conversations and Consistent Messaging
Stokes issued his "weak men" comment subsequent to his side were beaten in the second Test to go 2-0 down.
The team subsequently took a holiday to a Queensland resort in the gap between the second and third matches.
Prior to the Adelaide contest, Stokes said his players had held "honest" conversations and he had urged them to "display some fight" in their effort to stay alive in the series.
Yet, Crawley stated the messaging from the captain and coach Brendon McCullum had stayed consistent with their prior three years in charge.
"The atmosphere has been very positive, unchanged," said the opener. "The focus is just trying to be optimistic, playing our brand, with lots of freedom. We believed we could do something special entering this Test."
Australia On the Verge of Rapid Ashes Triumph
The opener's wicket late on Saturday came during a decisive triple-strike by Australian off-spinner Lyon.
Lyon's triple strike in a short spell – he also bowled Harry Brook and Stokes himself – left England 207-6 chasing a notional total of 435 runs.
Consequently, the home team require just four more wickets on Sunday's final day to move to an insurmountable 3-0 lead after three matches played.
Defeat would prolong the English team's drought in Australia to 18 Tests and condemn them to a fourth successive overseas Ashes loss.
This series will be completed in only 11 days of play – after England losing the initial matches in rapid time respectively.
The last time 1921, when Australia sealed a series win in the UK in eight days, has the outcome of the Ashes urn been decided so quickly. Australia have also won in 11 days on two other occasions in the modern era.
"This is disheartening," said Crawley. "We came here to win the Ashes and we're facing elimination now."
"There remains plenty to play for and we'll definitely view it with that mindset," Crawley added.
"The challenge has been tough. They're a very, very good side. It was inevitably hard coming here to face them. They entered as the front-runners coming in to it they've proven why."
Pope's Position In Question
While the opener's performance in Adelaide likely secures doubts about his immediate future in the side, Ollie Pope looks under immense pressure for his spot in the Melbourne Test on Boxing Day.
Pope was out for 17 runs in the team's second innings on Saturday, extending his modest returns versus Australia.
In sixteen Ashes knocks, Pope has failed to score a half-century and averages just 17.62.
Only one other English batsman since 1900 – Amiss – has featured as many times in the top six in the Ashes and returned a lower average.
But, the opener insisted any notion Pope is under the microscope comes from "you guys" – referring to the press – "not inside the camp."
"We all know how good of a player he is," added he. "He has had a productive year if I'm honest."
"He has produced some really good knocks. This is talk from the outside. There's no discussion of that nature on Ollie in the camp," Crawley finished.
