England opening batter Crawley has indicated he was not familiar with statements from skipper Ben Stokes regarding the team environment as no place for "weak men".
Stokes made those words in several interviews following England's defeat in the second match of the Ashes versus the Australians previously.
In the lead-up to the third Test, where England are staring at a series loss with a match to spare, Stokes stated he had allowed his message to "drift around" among the playing group.
"I have completed all the talking in recent days that I required," said the England leader.
But, after the opener scored a knock of 85 on the penultimate day in the third Test, he stated: "I missed those remarks."
"I wasn't actively searching for it. Our approach is to take anything stated in the press with some skepticism," Crawley continued.
Raw Conversations and Consistent Messaging
The captain issued his "fragile individuals" comment subsequent to England suffered a loss in the second Test to fall two matches behind.
The England squad subsequently took a break to a Queensland resort in the gap between the second and the upcoming Tests.
Prior to this match, Stokes said his team had held "raw" conversations and he had urged them to "show a bit of dog" in their effort to stay in contention in the series.
Yet, the Kent batsman stated the guidance from the captain and coach McCullum had remained in line with their prior tenure in leadership.
"It's been extremely upbeat, the same as always," noted Crawley. "It's just trying to be optimistic, playing our brand, with great liberty. It felt like we were capable of something special entering this game."
The Hosts Close of Rapid Series Victory
Crawley's wicket on day four came during a decisive three-wicket burst by Australian spinner Nathan Lyon.
Lyon's three wickets in 20 deliveries – including the wickets of Brook and Ben Stokes – meant England 207-6 chasing a notional target of 435 runs.
This means, the home team need just four more wickets on the final day to secure an unassailable 3-0 advantage with three Tests.
Defeat will extend England's winless run in Australia to 18 consecutive matches and condemn them to a fourth successive away Ashes defeat.
This series 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 Australia completed victory in the UK 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 regain the Ashes and now we are facing elimination now."
"There remains plenty to play for and we'll definitely view it like that," he continued.
"It's been difficult. Australia is a formidable team. It was always going to be tough coming here to face them. They were the favourites and have demonstrated their quality."
Ollie Pope's Place In Question
Although the opener's innings in the third Test likely secures questions about his short-term place in the England team, Pope looks under threat for his spot in the Melbourne Test on Boxing Day.
Pope was out for 17 runs in England's second innings on day four, adding to his poor record versus Australia.
Across sixteen Ashes knocks, Pope has never made a fifty and averages 17.62.
Only one other English batsman since 1900 – Amiss – has featured an equal number of innings in the top six in the Ashes and returned a lower average.
However, Crawley said any notion his teammate is under the microscope originates with "you guys" – meaning the press – "and not within the team."
"We all know how good of a player he is," added Crawley. "Ollie has enjoyed a productive year to be frank."
"He has played several excellent innings. It is talk externally. There's no discussion of that nature on Ollie in the camp," he concluded.
