England opening batter Crawley has indicated he had no knowledge of comments made by skipper Ben Stokes about the dressing room not being "those lacking fortitude".
Stokes delivered those words in several conversations in the wake of England's defeat in the second Ashes series against Australia previously.
In the lead-up to the Adelaide Test, where England now face defeat with a match to spare, the captain stated he had allowed his sentiment to "drift around" within the playing group.
"I've done the necessary discussions in recent days that I needed to have done," remarked the England leader.
But, following Crawley made 85 on the penultimate day in Adelaide, he commented: "I didn't see that."
"I wasn't actively searching for it. Our approach is to take anything stated in the media with a pinch of salt," he added.
Frank Discussions and Steady Philosophy
The captain made the "fragile individuals" observation after England were beaten in Brisbane to fall two matches behind.
The England squad subsequently took a holiday to a Queensland resort in the gap between the second and the upcoming Tests.
Prior to this match, he said his players had held "honest" talks and he had urged them to "show a bit of dog" in their battle to remain alive in the series.
Nevertheless, the Kent batsman asserted the guidance from Stokes and head coach Brendon McCullum had stayed consistent with their prior tenure in leadership.
"The atmosphere has been extremely upbeat, unchanged," said the opener. "It's on maintaining positivity, play our way, with great liberty. We believed we were capable of an extraordinary feat going into this Test."
Australia On the Verge of Historic Series Victory
Crawley's wicket on day four was part of a crucial three-wicket burst by Australia off-spinner Nathan Lyon.
Lyon's three wickets in a short spell – he also bowled Harry Brook and Ben Stokes – left England 207-6 in pursuit of a notional target of 435.
Consequently, Australia need just four more wickets on the final day to move to an unassailable 3-0 advantage with three matches played.
A loss would prolong England's winless run in this country to 18 consecutive matches and condemn them to a fourth successive overseas Ashes series defeat.
This series is set to be decided in just eleven days of cricket – with England fell the initial matches in rapid time respectively.
Not since 1921, when the Australians sealed victory in England in eight days, has the destination of the urn been determined more swiftly. The hosts have also won in eleven days on two other instances in the 21st century.
"It's disheartening," admitted Crawley. "Our goal was to win the Ashes and now we are facing elimination now."
"There will still be significant pride at stake and we'll definitely view it like that," he continued.
"It's been tough. They're a very, very good team. It was inevitably hard coming here against them. They entered as the front-runners and they've proven why."
Ollie Pope's Position In Question
Although Crawley's innings in the third Test probably answers doubts about his immediate future in the side, Pope appears under immense pressure for his position in the Melbourne Test on Boxing Day.
The Surrey batsman was out for 17 in the team's second knock on day four, extending his modest returns versus the old enemy.
Across 16 Ashes innings, Pope has never made a half-century and averages 17.62.
A solitary other England player since 1900 – Dennis Amiss – has featured an equal number of innings in the top order in Ashes Tests and returned a poorer average.
But, Crawley insisted any suggestion Pope is under the microscope originates with "you guys" – meaning the journalists – "and not within the team."
"The squad is fully aware of his considerable talent," said Crawley. "Ollie has enjoyed a productive year if I'm honest."
"He has produced some really good knocks. This is noise from the outside. There is no discussion of that nature regarding Pope in the camp," he finished.
