Mindset is always to win: Ajinkya Rahane

India begin their gruelling long home season of 13 Tests from Thursday against New Zealand in the first of three matches at Green Park, Kanpur.

This will be a key game in setting the tone for the rest of the season in which India will take on England and Australia.

However tiring or challenging it may sound, India are all geared up for the challenge with excitement. Vice-captain Ajinkya Rahane said that the players are in a 'good space' ahead of the challenge.

"It is exciting times for us with the 13 Tests scheduled at home. The West Indies tour went well for us. Some players also featured in the Duleep Trophy before the New Zealand series. We feel we are in pretty good space at the moment," Rahane said in Kanpur on Monday.

"It will be important to play series by series. We know our conditions here. Having said that, it is important that we respect the opponents in all the 13 Tests."

India will be back playing on their strength — the rank turners — and are expecting the Green Park wicket, hosting country's 500th Test, to be no different. However, the rain could play spoilsport. For the record, India's first practice session on Sunday was washed out due to heavy rain.

"The weather is not in our control but we have generally seen slow and low wickets here, like it was in the ODI against South Africa last year. Every day (of the game) the pitch behaves different so we will have to analyse how it would play out each day. Anyway as a team we don't focus on the pitch, we are focussed on putting up a good performance," said Rahane.

No matter how little the team is focusing on the wicket and more on performance, the wicket will definitely play a key role and Rahane is hopeful that spinners would get some help.

"Hopefully, the wicket will turn. We all know in India that wickets are helpful for the spinners. That is our strength here and it is important to play to our strengths. As of now, we are not sure how the wicket will behave," said the batsman.

The Kiwis, in their only practice game, had a tough time play India's powerhouse Mumbai on a placid Ferozeshah Kotla track. Their bowlers conceded more than 400 runs on a single day. But Rahane's isn't reading too much into the practice game.

"What happens in a practice match is that you are bound to try a few different things. The mindset in in a warm-up is different from a Test match. They have good bowlers, all three (spinners) are playing together. We respect them. We don't take anyone lightly. Our focus will be on not allowing them to settle into a rhythm," Rahane said.

On the turning tracks, New Zealand will also rely on the pace of their seamers Trent Boult and Neil Wagner, but Rahane is unperturbed by the challenge that the duo could post.

"After seeing videos, we will get a better idea (on how to prepare against the angling balls). As a batting unit, we think of batting over by over and session by session. In Test cricket, every session is important. Not only them (fast bowlers), it is important to give respect to all their bowlers. New Zealand are a good solid team and also have an experienced batting line-up," Rahane emphasised.

"It is important to start from the scratch. Yes we know we are playing 13 Tests. This Test will be very crucial. It will set the tone for the rest of the home season. We all are ready for that. We never have it in our mind that the match should end in three or four days. The mindset is always to win. The duration doesn't matter. The attitude does," he said.

India will be playing its 500th Test and Rahane said winning the game will be the biggest celebration. "As a player, the focus will be on the match. If we win, it will be the biggest celebration. It will be a historic moment. All of us feel lucky to be part of it," Rahane added.