Even as the large majority of cricket fan are protesting the exclusion of Kaif from the Indian Test team, his elder brother Saif had some words of restraint. ‘‘These things are a part of cricket’’, he told The Indian Express here today. ‘‘Of course I would want my brother to play but the decision of the selection committee and the captain is final. The competition is tough and Yuvraj is also a wonderful cricketer.’’ Saif, in town for JP Atray Memorial Cricket Tournament, didn’t stop there. ‘‘It was also not wrong to leave out Kaif in the second Test too. If one player is chosen then he should be given the full opportunity to showcase his skills, changing him at that point will do no one good. Cricket is still a team game.’’ Kaif’s exclusion turned on the heat back home, when a bunch of fans in Allahabad burnt an effigy of skipper Sourav Ganguly, holding him responsible for the decision. The wheel had turned full circle because, just two years ago, Kaif’s poor performance had irked ‘fans’ into smearing the family residence with black paint and oil. ‘‘It shouldn’t have happened,’’ said Saif, referring to yesterday’s incident. ‘‘Burning the effigy was wrong. I think fans here are mad about cricket, which should be toned down. We are humans and can commit mistakes, teams lose but life goes on,’’ he said.
