England opener Crawley has indicated he had no knowledge of comments from captain Ben Stokes regarding the dressing room as no place for "weak men".
Stokes delivered those words in multiple conversations in the wake of his team's defeat in the second match of the Ashes versus the Australians previously.
Ahead of the Adelaide Test, where England now face defeat with a match to spare, Stokes stated he had allowed his message to "circulate freely" among the squad.
"I've done all the talking in recent days that I required," said the England leader.
However, after the opener made a knock of 85 on the fourth day in Adelaide, he commented: "I didn't see that."
"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," he added.
Frank Discussions and Consistent Messaging
Stokes issued his "weak men" comment after his side suffered a loss in the second Test to go two matches behind.
The England squad subsequently took a break to a Queensland resort between the second and third Tests.
Prior to this match, Stokes said his team had held "raw" talks and he had asked them to "show a bit of dog" in their effort to stay in contention in the Ashes battle.
Nevertheless, the Kent batsman asserted the guidance from Stokes and head coach McCullum had stayed in line with their previous tenure in charge.
"It's been very positive, unchanged," noted the opener. "It's on maintaining positivity, playing our brand, with lots of freedom. It felt like we were capable of something special going into this Test."
The Hosts Close of Historic Ashes Triumph
Crawley's wicket on day four was part of a crucial triple-strike by Australian spinner Lyon.
Lyon's triple strike in a short spell – he also bowled Brook and Stokes himself – left the chasing side 207-6 in pursuit of a daunting target of 435.
Consequently, Australia require just four more wickets on Sunday's last day to secure an unassailable 3-0 lead after three matches played.
A loss will extend the English team's winless run in this country to 18 Tests and condemn them to a fourth straight away Ashes series defeat.
The current battle is set to be decided in only eleven days of cricket – with England fell the first two Tests in two and four days each.
Not since 1921, when the Australians sealed a series win in the UK in eight days, has the destination of the Ashes urn been determined more swiftly. The hosts have also won in 11 days on two other occasions in the 21st century.
"It's disappointing," said the batsman. "Our goal was to regain the Ashes and now we are facing elimination at this point."
"There remains significant pride at stake 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 tough coming here against them. They were the favourites and have demonstrated their quality."
Pope's Place Under Scrutiny
While Crawley's performance in Adelaide probably answers doubts about his short-term future in the England team, Ollie Pope looks under threat for his position in the fourth Test starting December 26th.
Pope fell for 17 runs in England's second innings on Saturday, extending his modest returns against the old enemy.
Across sixteen Ashes knocks, Pope has failed to score a half-century and boasts an average of just 17.62.
Only one other England player since 1900 – Dennis Amiss – has played an equal number of innings in the top order in the Ashes and returned a lower average.
However, the opener insisted any suggestion his teammate is under the microscope originates with "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 good year if I'm honest."
"He has produced some really good knocks. This is noise externally. There is no discussion of that nature on Ollie amongst the players," Crawley finished.
