England opener Crawley suggested he was not familiar with statements from skipper Ben Stokes regarding the dressing room as no place for "weak men".
Stokes delivered those words in multiple conversations following his team's loss in the second Ashes series versus the Australians previously.
In the lead-up to the third Test, where England now face defeat with a match to spare, the captain stated he had let his message to "circulate freely" within the playing group.
"I've done the necessary discussions in recent days that I needed to have done," remarked Stokes.
But, following the opener scored 85 on the fourth day in Adelaide, he commented: "I missed those remarks."
"I didn't see and wasn't really looking out for it. We take anything stated in the press with some skepticism," he added.
Frank Discussions and Consistent Messaging
The captain made the "weak men" comment after his side suffered a loss in the second Test to go 2-0 down.
The England squad subsequently took a holiday to a Queensland resort between the second and the upcoming matches.
Before 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 asserted the messaging from the captain and head coach Brendon McCullum had remained consistent with their prior three years in leadership.
"The atmosphere has been extremely upbeat, unchanged," said the opener. "It's on maintaining positivity, play our way, with great liberty. We believed we were capable of something special entering this game."
The Hosts On the Verge of Rapid Ashes Triumph
Crawley's dismissal on day four came during a crucial triple-strike 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 207-6 chasing a daunting total of 435.
This means, Australia need four wickets on Sunday's final day to move to an insurmountable three-nil advantage after three matches played.
A loss would prolong the English team's winless run in Australia to 18 Tests and condemn them to a fourth straight away Ashes series defeat.
This series will be completed in only 11 days of cricket – after England losing the initial matches in rapid time each.
The last time 1921, when Australia completed a series win in England in eight days, has the destination of the urn been decided more swiftly. The hosts have also won in 11 days on two other occasions in the modern era.
"It's disappointing," said Crawley. "Our goal was to win the Ashes and we're staring down the barrel at this point."
"There will still be plenty to play for and we will definitely view it with that mindset," Crawley added.
"It's been difficult. Australia is a very, very good side. It was always going to be tough coming here to face them. They entered as the favourites and have demonstrated their quality."
Ollie Pope's Place Under Scrutiny
Although Crawley's innings in the third Test likely secures doubts about his immediate place in the England team, Pope looks under immense pressure for his position in the fourth Test on Boxing Day.
The Surrey batsman was out for 17 runs in the team's second knock on day four, adding to his modest returns versus the old enemy.
Across 16 Ashes innings, the Surrey man has never made a fifty and boasts an average of 17.62.
A solitary other England player in over a century – Dennis Amiss – has played an equal number of innings in the top order in Ashes Tests and returned a lower average.
However, Crawley said any notion Pope is being scrutinised comes from "you guys" – referring to the press – "not inside the camp."
"The squad is fully aware of his considerable talent," added he. "Ollie has enjoyed a good year if I'm honest."
"He has played some really good knocks. It is talk from the outside. There's no discussion like that on Ollie amongst the players," Crawley concluded.
