England opening batter Crawley has indicated he had no knowledge of comments made by captain Ben Stokes regarding the dressing room as no place for "those lacking fortitude".
The all-rounder made those words in several conversations in the wake of England's loss in the second Ashes against Australia previously.
Ahead of the third Test, where the visitors are staring at a series loss with a match to spare, the captain stated he had let his sentiment to "drift around" within the squad.
"I've done the necessary discussions over the past two days that I required," remarked the England leader.
But, following the opener scored a knock of 85 on the penultimate day in the third Test, he commented: "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 media with some skepticism," he added.
Raw Conversations and Steady Philosophy
Stokes issued his "fragile individuals" comment after England were beaten in the second Test to fall 2-0 down.
The team afterwards took a holiday to Noosa in the gap between the second and the upcoming matches.
Before this match, he revealed his team had held "raw" talks and he had asked them to "show a bit of dog" in their battle to remain in contention in the Ashes battle.
Yet, the Kent batsman stated the guidance from Stokes and coach Brendon McCullum had remained in line with their prior tenure in leadership.
"The atmosphere has been extremely upbeat, unchanged," noted Crawley. "The focus is on maintaining positivity, playing our brand, with great liberty. It felt like we could do an extraordinary feat going into this game."
Australia On the Verge of Historic Ashes Triumph
Crawley's wicket on day four came during a decisive three-wicket burst by Australia off-spinner Nathan Lyon.
The spinner's three wickets in 20 deliveries – he also bowled Harry Brook and Stokes himself – meant England 207-6 chasing a daunting target of 435.
This means, Australia need four wickets on the last day to secure an insurmountable 3-0 lead with three Tests.
A loss would prolong England's winless run in Australia to 18 consecutive matches and condemn them to a fourth successive overseas Ashes defeat.
The current battle is set to be decided in only eleven days of play – after England losing the initial matches in two and four days each.
The last time 1921, when the Australians completed victory in England in eight days, has the outcome of the urn been determined so quickly. Australia have also won in eleven days on two other occasions in the modern era.
"It's disheartening," said Crawley. "We came here to regain the Ashes and we're facing elimination now."
"There remains plenty to play for and we will certainly approach it like that," he continued.
"It's been tough. They're a formidable team. It was always going to be hard coming here against them. They entered as the front-runners coming in to it they've proven why."
Pope's Place Under Scrutiny
While Crawley's innings in the third Test probably answers doubts about his short-term future in the England team, Pope looks under threat for his position in the Melbourne Test on Boxing Day.
Pope was out for 17 runs in England's second innings on Saturday, adding to his modest returns against Australia.
Across 16 Ashes innings, the Surrey man has failed to score a half-century and boasts an average of just 17.62.
A solitary other England player since 1900 – Amiss – has featured an equal number of innings in the top six in Ashes Tests and recorded a lower average.
But, Crawley said any suggestion Pope is under the microscope originates with "the media" – meaning the journalists – "and not within the team."
"We all know of his considerable talent," said Crawley. "Ollie has enjoyed a productive year to be frank."
"He has played some really good knocks. This is talk externally. There's no chat of that nature regarding Pope in the camp," he concluded.
