The English opening batter Crawley suggested he was not familiar with statements from skipper Ben Stokes regarding the team environment as no place for "those lacking fortitude".
Stokes made this message in several conversations following England's defeat in the second match of the Ashes against the Australians earlier this month.
In the lead-up to the Adelaide Test, where England now face defeat at the earliest opportunity, Stokes noted he had allowed his sentiment to "drift around" within the playing group.
"I've done the necessary discussions over the past two days that I needed to have done," said Stokes.
But, after Crawley scored a knock of 85 on the fourth day in the third Test, he stated: "I didn't see that."
"I wasn't actively searching for it. Our approach is to take anything stated in the press with a pinch of salt," he added.
Frank Discussions and Consistent Messaging
The captain issued his "weak men" observation subsequent to England suffered a loss in Brisbane to go two matches behind.
The England squad afterwards took a holiday to Noosa in the gap between the second and third matches.
Before this match, Stokes revealed his team had held "honest" conversations and he had asked them to "display some fight" in their battle to stay in contention in the Ashes battle.
Nevertheless, the Kent batsman stated the messaging from Stokes and coach Brendon McCullum had remained in line with their prior three years in leadership.
"The atmosphere has been very positive, the same as always," noted the opener. "The focus is just trying to be optimistic, play our way, with lots of freedom. We believed we could do something special going into this Test."
Australia On the Verge of Historic Series Victory
The opener's dismissal late on Saturday came during a crucial three-wicket burst by Australia spinner Lyon.
Lyon's three wickets in 20 deliveries – including the wickets of Harry Brook and Stokes himself – meant England 207-6 chasing a notional target of 435.
This means, Australia need four wickets on the last day to move to an insurmountable 3-0 lead after three matches played.
A loss will extend the English team's drought in Australia to 18 Tests and ensure a fourth successive away Ashes defeat.
This series is set to be decided in only 11 days of play – after England fell the initial matches in two and four days respectively.
The last time 1921, when Australia sealed victory in the UK in eight days, has the destination of the urn been determined more swiftly. The hosts have also won in 11 days on two other instances in the modern era.
"This is disheartening," admitted Crawley. "We came here to win the Ashes and we're staring down the barrel at this point."
"There remains plenty to play for and we will definitely view it with that mindset," he continued.
"The challenge has been tough. They're a very, very good side. It was always going to be tough coming here to face them. They entered as the front-runners coming in to it have demonstrated their quality."
Ollie Pope's Position Under Scrutiny
While the opener's innings in the third Test likely secures doubts about his short-term future in the England team, Pope looks under threat for his spot in the Melbourne Test on Boxing Day.
Pope was out for 17 runs in the team's second innings on day four, adding to his modest returns against Australia.
In 16 Ashes innings, the Surrey man has never made a fifty and boasts an average of just 17.62.
A solitary other English batsman since 1900 – Dennis Amiss – has played an equal number of innings in the top six in the Ashes and returned a lower average.
But, the opener said any notion Pope is being scrutinised comes from "you guys" – meaning the press – "not inside the camp."
"The squad is fully aware how good of a player he is," said Crawley. "He has had a productive year if I'm honest."
"He has produced several excellent innings. It is talk from the outside. There's no discussion like that on Ollie amongst the players," he concluded.
