"I'm 30 now and I still feel young, but 30 in sport's actually not that young anymore," Robinson said at Sussex's pre-season media day. "So I feel like it's the last summer where maybe I get any slack, if you like. Going forward I have to perform, I have to be injury-free and prove to people that I am the right person for the job, because there's a lot of good seamers in the country now, a lot of younger seamers are coming through. So it's probably a make-or-break summer for me.

"I don't mind that [having a point to prove]. I think it gives me something to drive forward to, something to engage my mind going forward. It's not that I'm not driven normally but when you have such a big point to prove, you have to really focus on it, otherwise it can slip away."

"For me, it's not necessarily thinking about bowling fast. It's that energy off the pitch that you see when I'm bowling well. Because of that, the speeds are up. Speed isn't something I will be focusing on purely, it's getting that snap back, that rhythm back, and hopefully the speeds will come from it. Bowling hard for as long as possible, all game, is something that Stokesy and Baz have asked me to do as well. That is what I will be aiming to do."

Robinson, who said that he had been undergoing therapy to deal with some of those personal issues, admitted that he had made himself a target by not backing up his bravado with on-field performances.

"I think when I come out and say so many things in the media and run my mouth a bit, if you like, then you have to expect backlash when you don't show up. I'm well aware that that can happen. Like I said, you say things all the time and if they don't come off, you look silly, and I think that's one of those occasions where the media are probably allowed to have my badge. I didn't perform to the level I wanted to and it's disappointing for me, but all I can do now is try and get it right."

Robinson is expected to play up to five of Sussex's seven games in the opening block of County Championship fixtures, and could then make his first T20 outing since 2021 in the Blast, with England not back in Test action until July with the arrival of West Indies. He said that his goal for the summer was "firstly to play some cricket" after the lack of game-time left him feeling "a bit stagnant" in India.

"Four or five games for Sussex would be nice. Hopefully I can get through those and hit the English summer flying," he said. "For me this year, it's about playing as much cricket as possible, getting back to a happy place and enjoying cricket again.

"It's got to the point now where I feel I've got a bit stagnant. The body wasn't moving as quickly as I'd have liked during the game in India. You have to play cricket if you want to play at the highest level. You can't just dip in and out, it's one of those sports. When you are on the field you realise how intense the game actually is. When you are off the field watching you think 'ah, that doesn't look too bad'. In India that probably caught up with me."

He added that, despite a difficult 12 months, he would be going into the season hoping to "change the narrative" around his commitment to playing for England.

"In my head and my heart I'm giving everything I've got. I'm following the programme England give me all the time and I'm doing everything I'm asked to do. Maybe I'm too laid-back at times, too horizontal, but I wouldn't be where I am today if I wasn't like that. I'm trying as hard as I can to give everything I've got, I'm passionate about playing for England and it's the only thing I really care about. I am trying to change the narrative that it looks like sometimes I don't care."