India-Pakistan women's cricket series in jeopardy over mounting political tensions

Tensions between neighbours India and Pakistan have escalated in recent times and it has not only affected the political relations but also sporting matters. The Board of Cricket for Control in India (BCCI) had already refused to let the men's cricket team play against Pakistan and now the series between arch-rivals women's teams is also in jeopardy.

The two countries were to play the series till the end of October but according to reports the BCCI has not responded to Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) queries on the series with a definite answer. And, if not played, the matter regarding how the points will be awarded will be referred to the event's technical committee.

"The two sides have until the end of this month to play the series, which has to be hosted by Pakistan. If the series doesn't go ahead, then the matter will be referred to the Event Technical Committee", an ICC spokesperson was quoted as saying by ESPNCricinfo.

The Pakistan cricket authorities, who are willing to host the series at the United Arab Emirates (UAE), want India to forfeit the six points available if they do not agree or are unwilling to play.

There have been two major instances of teams refusing to play matches in the past with the teams having to forfeit points both the times. During the 1996 World Cup, West Indies and Australia refused to send their teams to Sri Lanka due to security and the points were awarded to the hosts while in 2003 World Cup England forfeited their match points with Zimbabwe and New Zealand with Kenya due to political unrest.

The Indian and Pakistani boards signed a Memorandum of Understanding in 2014 which stated that the two countries would play six series between 2015 and 2023 but due to the delicate political situation there has been no progress on the same.