England opening batter Crawley has indicated he had no knowledge of comments made by captain Ben Stokes about the team environment not being "those lacking fortitude".
Stokes made those words in multiple conversations following England's defeat in the second match of the Ashes against Australia previously.
In the lead-up to the Adelaide Test, where England are staring at defeat with a match to spare, Stokes stated he had allowed his message to "circulate freely" within the squad.
"I have completed all the talking over the past two days that I required," said Stokes.
However, after Crawley scored a knock of 85 on the penultimate day in the third Test, 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 press with some skepticism," Crawley continued.
Frank Discussions and Consistent Messaging
Stokes issued his "fragile individuals" comment subsequent to England were beaten in Brisbane to fall two matches behind.
The team afterwards took a break to Noosa in the gap between the second and the upcoming matches.
Prior to this match, Stokes said his players had held "honest" talks and he had asked them to "display some fight" in their effort to stay in contention in the Ashes battle.
Nevertheless, the Kent batsman stated the guidance from Stokes and head coach Brendon McCullum had stayed consistent with their previous tenure in charge.
"The atmosphere has been extremely upbeat, unchanged," said Crawley. "The focus is on maintaining positivity, play our way, with great liberty. We believed we were capable of something special going into this Test."
The Hosts On the Verge of Rapid Series Victory
Crawley's wicket late on Saturday came during a crucial three-wicket burst by Australian off-spinner Nathan Lyon.
The spinner's triple strike in a short spell – he also bowled Harry Brook and Stokes himself – left England six down for 207 in pursuit of a notional target of 435 runs.
Consequently, Australia need four wickets on the final day to secure an insurmountable 3-0 lead with three Tests.
A loss would prolong the English team's winless run in this country to 18 Tests and ensure a fourth straight overseas Ashes defeat.
The current battle is set to be decided in just 11 days of play – with England fell the initial matches in rapid time respectively.
Not since 1921, when Australia completed a series win in England in eight days, has the destination of the urn been determined so quickly. The hosts have also triumphed in eleven days on two other occasions in the 21st century.
"It's disheartening," said Crawley. "We came here to win the Ashes and now we are facing elimination at this point."
"There will still be 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 team. It was inevitably tough touring here to face them. They entered as the front-runners and have demonstrated their quality."
Ollie Pope's Place Under Scrutiny
While Crawley's innings in Adelaide likely secures questions about his short-term future in the side, Ollie Pope appears under threat for his position in the fourth Test starting December 26th.
The Surrey batsman fell for 17 runs in the team's second innings on Saturday, adding to his poor record against the old enemy.
Across sixteen Ashes knocks, the Surrey man has never made a fifty and averages just 17.62.
A solitary other English batsman since 1900 – Amiss – has played as many times in the top six in the Ashes and recorded a poorer average.
However, Crawley insisted any suggestion his teammate is under the microscope comes from "you guys" – referring to the press – "and not within the team."
"The squad is fully aware of his considerable talent," said he. "He has had a productive year if I'm honest."
"He has produced several excellent innings. It is noise externally. There is no chat like that regarding Pope in the camp," he finished.
