The English opening batter Crawley suggested he was not familiar with statements from skipper Ben Stokes regarding the dressing room as no place for "those lacking fortitude".
Stokes delivered those words in multiple conversations following England's loss in the second match of the Ashes versus Australia previously.
Ahead of the Adelaide Test, where England now face a series loss at the earliest opportunity, the captain stated he had let his message to "circulate freely" within the squad.
"I've done all the talking in recent days that I required," said Stokes.
But, after Crawley 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 everything that is said in the media with some skepticism," Crawley continued.
Raw Conversations and Consistent Messaging
The captain issued his "fragile individuals" observation after his side were beaten in Brisbane to fall 2-0 down.
The team subsequently took a holiday to a Queensland resort in the gap between the second and the upcoming Tests.
Prior to the Adelaide contest, Stokes revealed his players had held "raw" conversations and he had asked them to "show a bit of dog" in their battle to stay alive in the Ashes battle.
Yet, the Kent batsman asserted the guidance from the captain and coach McCullum had stayed in line with their previous three years in leadership.
"The atmosphere has been very positive, the same as always," noted the opener. "The focus is on maintaining positivity, playing our brand, with lots of freedom. We believed we were capable of something special entering this game."
Australia On the Verge of Historic Ashes Triumph
Crawley's dismissal on day four was part of a crucial triple-strike by Australian spinner Lyon.
Lyon's three wickets in a short spell – including the wickets of Harry Brook and Stokes himself – left England 207-6 in pursuit of a notional total of 435 runs.
Consequently, Australia require just four more wickets on the final day to secure an unassailable 3-0 advantage with three matches played.
A loss would prolong the English team's winless run in Australia to 18 consecutive matches and condemn them to a fourth straight overseas Ashes series defeat.
The current battle is set to be decided in just 11 days of cricket – with England losing the initial matches in two and four days each.
The last time 1921, when Australia completed victory in England in eight days, has the destination of the urn been decided more swiftly. The hosts have also triumphed in 11 days on two other instances in the 21st century.
"This is disappointing," admitted Crawley. "We came here to regain the Ashes and we're facing elimination now."
"There will still be plenty to play for and we will definitely view it with that mindset," Crawley added.
"The challenge has been difficult. Australia is a very, very good side. It was always going to be hard coming here against them. They were the favourites coming in to it have demonstrated their quality."
Ollie Pope's Position Under Scrutiny
While Crawley's innings in Adelaide probably answers doubts about his immediate place in the England team, Pope appears under immense pressure for his position in the Melbourne Test on Boxing Day.
The Surrey batsman was out for 17 runs in the team's second innings on day four, extending his poor record versus Australia.
In 16 Ashes innings, Pope has failed to score a half-century and averages just 17.62.
Only one other English batsman since 1900 – Amiss – has featured as many times in the top order in the Ashes and returned a lower average.
But, the opener said any notion his teammate is being scrutinised comes from "the media" – referring to the press – "and not within the team."
"The squad is fully aware of his considerable talent," said Crawley. "He has had a good year to be frank."
"He has produced several excellent innings. This is talk from the outside. There's no chat like that regarding Pope amongst the players," he concluded.
