The English opening batter Crawley suggested he had no knowledge of comments made by captain Ben Stokes regarding the dressing room not being "those lacking fortitude".
The all-rounder delivered this message in multiple interviews in the wake of his team's loss in the second Ashes versus the Australians previously.
In the lead-up to the Adelaide Test, where the visitors are staring at defeat with a match to spare, Stokes noted he had allowed his message to "drift around" within the squad.
"I've done all the talking over the past two days that I needed to have done," remarked the England leader.
However, following the opener scored 85 on the penultimate day in the third Test, he commented: "I missed those remarks."
"I wasn't actively searching for it. Our approach is to take everything that is said in the media with some skepticism," Crawley continued.
Frank Discussions and Steady Philosophy
The captain made the "weak men" comment after his side were beaten in Brisbane to go two matches behind.
The team subsequently took a holiday to a Queensland resort in the gap between the second and third Tests.
Prior to this match, Stokes revealed his players had held "honest" talks and he had asked them to "show a bit of dog" in their effort to stay in contention in the series.
Yet, the Kent batsman stated the messaging from Stokes and head coach Brendon McCullum had remained in line with their prior three years in charge.
"It's been very positive, unchanged," said the opener. "It's just trying to be optimistic, play our way, with great liberty. It felt like we could do an extraordinary feat going into this game."
The Hosts Close of Historic Ashes Triumph
Crawley's wicket on day four was part of a crucial triple-strike by Australia off-spinner Lyon.
The spinner's three wickets in a short spell – including the wickets of Harry Brook and Stokes himself – meant the chasing side six down for 207 in pursuit of a notional target of 435 runs.
Consequently, the home team need just four more wickets on the last day to move to an insurmountable 3-0 lead after three Tests.
Defeat will extend England's winless run in Australia to 18 Tests and condemn them to a fourth successive overseas Ashes series defeat.
The current battle will be completed in only eleven days of cricket – after England losing the first two Tests in two and four days respectively.
The last time 1921, when the Australians sealed a series win in England in eight days, has the outcome of the urn been decided more swiftly. Australia have also triumphed in eleven days on two other instances in the modern era.
"This is disappointing," said Crawley. "Our goal was to win the Ashes and now we are facing elimination at this point."
"There will still be plenty to play for and we will certainly approach it with that mindset," he continued.
"It's been tough. Australia is a formidable team. It was always going to be hard touring here to face them. They entered as the front-runners and they've proven why."
Pope's Position In Question
Although Crawley's innings in the third Test likely secures questions about his short-term future in the side, Ollie Pope looks under threat for his spot in the fourth Test starting December 26th.
The Surrey batsman fell for 17 in the team's second knock on day four, extending his modest returns against Australia.
Across sixteen Ashes knocks, Pope has failed to score a half-century and averages 17.62.
Only one other English batsman since 1900 – Dennis Amiss – has played as many times in the top six in Ashes Tests and returned a lower average.
However, the opener insisted any suggestion his teammate is being scrutinised originates with "you guys" – referring to the press – "not inside the camp."
"The squad is fully aware how good of a player he is," said he. "He has had a good year to be frank."
"He has produced some really good knocks. This is noise from the outside. There is no discussion like that on Ollie in the camp," Crawley concluded.
