India, Aug. 22 -- India start a new season at home, where they will always be firm favourites in spite of what has happened in the last 18 months of Test cricket, both on and off the field.

When I sit down in the Hyderabad stadium, I will witness a new look India Test team with the likes of Kohli, Pujara, Raina and Badrinath. It will be the beginning of a new era for Indian cricket.

It is the beginning of a transition which we were all talking of over a period of time and it will be very interesting.

This game is massive in this part of the world and all these young players along with the grand old man of Indian cricket will have massive roles in taking the Test team forward.

Motivator

The young guns are lucky to have the great Sachin Tendulkar in the dressing room, who will pass on his valuable experience at a very important phase of their careers.

We have seen young Virat put the world stage on fire and he will also form an inspiration to other young batters.

All of them are on the same platform and hence the competition will be healthy and great to watch.

It is very important at this stage not to compare these players with the greats of the game and allow them to settle down without worrying who they are replacing.

They have a relatively weak side to start with in New Zealand and it will be the right start to a long season.

The writer is a former captain (360 Corporate Relations).

Published by HT Syndication with permission from Hindustan Times.