England opening batter Crawley has indicated he had no knowledge of statements from captain Ben Stokes regarding the team environment as no place for "weak men".
Stokes made this message in multiple interviews in the wake of England's loss in the second Ashes series against Australia earlier this month.
Ahead of the Adelaide Test, where England are staring at a series loss at the earliest opportunity, Stokes stated he had let his sentiment to "circulate freely" within the squad.
"I've done all the talking in recent days that I needed to have done," said Stokes.
But, following the opener made 85 on the fourth day in Adelaide, he stated: "I didn't see that."
"I didn't see and wasn't really looking out for it. Our approach is to take anything stated in the media with some skepticism," he added.
Frank Discussions and Consistent Messaging
The captain made the "fragile individuals" comment after England were beaten in the second Test to fall 2-0 down.
The team afterwards went on a break to Noosa in the gap between the second and third matches.
Before this match, he revealed his team had held "honest" conversations and he had urged them to "display some fight" in their effort to remain alive in the Ashes battle.
Nevertheless, the Kent batsman stated the messaging from the captain and head coach Brendon McCullum had stayed in line with their previous three years in charge.
"The atmosphere has been extremely upbeat, the same as always," noted the opener. "The focus is just trying to be optimistic, play our way, with lots of freedom. It felt like we were capable of an extraordinary feat going into this game."
The Hosts On the Verge of Rapid Ashes Triumph
Crawley's wicket late on Saturday came during a crucial three-wicket burst by Australia spinner Lyon.
Lyon's three wickets in 20 deliveries – including the wickets of Brook and Ben Stokes – left England six down for 207 in pursuit of a notional target of 435.
This means, Australia need just four more wickets on the final day to secure an insurmountable three-nil lead with three matches played.
A loss would prolong the English team's drought in this country to 18 consecutive matches and ensure a fourth straight overseas Ashes series defeat.
This series is set to be decided in only eleven days of play – with England fell the first two Tests in rapid time each.
The last time 1921, when the Australians completed victory in England in eight days, has the outcome of the urn been decided more swiftly. Australia have also won in eleven days on two other instances in the 21st century.
"This is disheartening," said Crawley. "We came here to win the Ashes and now we are facing elimination now."
"There will still be plenty to play for and we'll definitely view it like that," Crawley added.
"It's been difficult. They're a formidable team. It was always going to be tough coming here to face them. They entered as the front-runners coming in to it have demonstrated their quality."
Pope's Place In Question
While the opener's performance in Adelaide likely secures doubts about his short-term future in the side, Pope looks under immense pressure for his position in the fourth Test starting December 26th.
Pope fell for 17 runs in England's second knock on day four, extending his poor record against the old enemy.
In 16 Ashes innings, Pope has failed to score a fifty 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 lower average.
But, Crawley insisted any notion Pope is under the microscope comes from "the media" – meaning the journalists – "not inside the camp."
"The squad is fully aware of his considerable talent," said he. "Ollie has enjoyed a productive year if I'm honest."
"He has played several excellent innings. This is noise from the outside. There's no discussion like that regarding Pope in the camp," Crawley concluded.
