England opening batter Crawley suggested he had no knowledge of comments from skipper Ben Stokes about the team environment as no place for "those lacking fortitude".
The all-rounder delivered this message in multiple interviews in the wake of England's defeat in the second match of the Ashes against the Australians earlier this month.
In the lead-up to the third Test, where the visitors are staring at defeat with a match to spare, the captain stated he had let his sentiment to "circulate freely" among the playing group.
"I've done the necessary discussions over the past two days that I required," remarked the England leader.
But, following the opener made 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
Stokes made the "fragile individuals" observation subsequent to England suffered a loss in Brisbane to go 2-0 down.
The team subsequently went on a holiday to Noosa between the second and the upcoming Tests.
Prior to the Adelaide contest, he said his team had held "raw" conversations and he had asked them to "display some fight" in their battle to stay in contention in the series.
Nevertheless, the Kent batsman asserted the messaging from the captain and head coach McCullum had stayed in line with their previous tenure in leadership.
"It's been extremely upbeat, the same as always," said the opener. "It's on maintaining positivity, play our way, with lots of freedom. We believed we could do something special going into this Test."
Australia On the Verge of Rapid Series Victory
The opener's wicket late on Saturday was part of a decisive three-wicket burst by Australia off-spinner Nathan Lyon.
Lyon's triple strike in 20 deliveries – including the wickets of Harry Brook and Ben Stokes – meant the chasing side 207-6 chasing a notional total of 435.
Consequently, the home team need just four more wickets on Sunday's final day to secure an unassailable 3-0 lead after three Tests.
Defeat will extend the English team's drought in Australia to 18 consecutive matches and ensure a fourth successive away Ashes series defeat.
The current battle is set to be decided in just 11 days of cricket – with England losing the initial matches in two and four days respectively.
The last time 1921, when Australia completed a series win in the UK in eight days, has the outcome of the Ashes urn been determined so quickly. The hosts have also won in eleven days on two other occasions in the 21st century.
"This is disheartening," said the batsman. "We came here to regain the Ashes and we're facing elimination at this point."
"There remains plenty to play for and we'll certainly approach it with that mindset," Crawley added.
"The challenge has been tough. They're a formidable side. It was always going to be 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 innings in the third Test likely secures questions about his immediate place in the England team, Ollie Pope looks under threat for his spot in the Melbourne Test starting December 26th.
Pope fell for 17 runs in England's second innings on Saturday, extending his poor record versus Australia.
Across sixteen Ashes knocks, the Surrey man has never made a half-century and boasts an average of 17.62.
Only one other English batsman since 1900 – Dennis Amiss – has featured as many times in the top order in Ashes Tests and returned a poorer average.
However, the opener insisted any suggestion his teammate is under the microscope originates with "the media" – referring to the journalists – "not inside the camp."
"The squad is fully aware how good of a player he is," added Crawley. "Ollie has enjoyed a productive year to be frank."
"He has produced some really good knocks. This is talk from the outside. There's no chat of that nature on Ollie amongst the players," he concluded.
