The English opener Crawley suggested he had no knowledge of comments from skipper Ben Stokes regarding the dressing room as no place for "weak men".
The all-rounder made this message in multiple conversations in the wake of England's loss in the second match of the Ashes series versus Australia previously.
In the lead-up to the Adelaide Test, where England are staring at a series loss with a match to spare, Stokes stated he had allowed his sentiment to "circulate freely" among the squad.
"I've done all the talking in recent days that I needed to have done," said the England leader.
However, after the opener scored 85 on the fourth day in Adelaide, he stated: "I didn't see that."
"I wasn't actively searching for it. We take anything stated in the press with some skepticism," Crawley continued.
Frank Discussions and Consistent Messaging
Stokes issued his "weak men" observation subsequent to his side suffered a loss in Brisbane to go two matches behind.
The team subsequently took a break to a Queensland resort in the gap between the second and the upcoming Tests.
Prior to the Adelaide contest, Stokes said his team had held "honest" conversations and he had asked them to "display some fight" in their battle to remain alive in the series.
Yet, the Kent batsman asserted the messaging from the captain and head coach McCullum had stayed consistent with their prior tenure in leadership.
"It's been very positive, unchanged," said Crawley. "The focus is on maintaining positivity, play our way, with great liberty. It felt like we could do something special entering this Test."
Australia On the Verge of Rapid Ashes Triumph
The opener's wicket late on Saturday came during a decisive triple-strike by Australian off-spinner Lyon.
The spinner's three wickets in 20 deliveries – including the wickets of Harry Brook and Stokes himself – left the chasing side six down for 207 chasing a notional total of 435 runs.
This means, Australia need four wickets on Sunday's final day to secure an insurmountable 3-0 advantage with three Tests.
A loss will extend England's drought in this country to 18 consecutive matches and ensure a fourth straight away Ashes defeat.
The current battle is set to be decided in just eleven days of cricket – after England losing the first two Tests in rapid time respectively.
Not since 1921, when Australia sealed victory in England in eight days, has the destination of the Ashes urn been determined more swiftly. Australia have also won in eleven days on two other occasions in the modern era.
"It's disappointing," admitted Crawley. "We came here to regain the Ashes and now we are staring down the barrel now."
"There will still be significant pride at stake and we'll definitely view it like that," Crawley added.
"The challenge has been tough. They're a very, very good team. It was always going to be hard coming here against them. They were the front-runners and they've proven why."
Pope's Place In Question
Although the opener's innings in Adelaide probably answers questions about his immediate future in the side, Pope looks under threat for his position in the Melbourne Test starting December 26th.
Pope was out for 17 runs in England's second innings on Saturday, extending his modest returns versus the old enemy.
Across 16 Ashes innings, the Surrey man has never made a fifty and boasts an average of just 17.62.
A solitary other England player in over a century – Amiss – has featured an equal number of innings in the top six in Ashes Tests and returned a poorer average.
However, Crawley said any suggestion Pope 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 Crawley. "He has had a productive year if I'm honest."
"He has produced several excellent innings. It is noise externally. There's no chat of that nature on Ollie amongst the players," Crawley concluded.
