New Delhi: India have been docked six women’s championship match points after failing to play against Pakistan amid simmering tension between the South Asian rivals, the world cricket body said on Wednesday.

The International Cricket Council (ICC) awarded Pakistan, who were supposed to host the games, two points for each of the three matches that were scheduled to be held between August 1 and October 31.

The ICC technical committee said it had considered written submissions from both the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) and its Pakistani counterpart before making the call.

“The technical committee was sensitive to the current state of relations between the nations of India and Pakistan, but concluded that the BCCI had not been able to establish acceptable reasons for not participating in this series,” the ICC said in a statement.

The decision means the Indian eves, who stay fifth in the points table, will miss out on automatic qualification for the 2017 World Cup in England.

Bilateral ties between the men’s cricket teams have been suspended since 2012 when Pakistan last toured India, but they have met each other in international tournaments including the World Cup, World T20, Champions Trophy and Asia Cup.

The Pakistan Cricket Board has welcomed the decision made by ICC technical committee to award six points to the national women’s team after India refused to play in October.

The PCB said that the ICC committee awarded the points to Pakistan women’s team since the series was deemed as forfeited by the Indian team in the round six of the ICC women’s championship league.

The points earned in the championship league go a long way in allowing teams to qualify for the next ICC World Cup.

The PCB said in a statement that it had made comprehensive submissions to the ICC, explaining that it made attempts in playing host to the Indian women team in Dubai but the efforts remained unsuccessful last October.

“The PCB thereafter involved ICC in this matter and finally requested the matter be referred to Technical Committee for decision of award of points,” the statement said.

PCB Chairman Shaharyar Khan said, “It is unfortunate that despite our sincere efforts we have not been able to play with India in the ICC Women’s Championship. The ultimate loss of Pakistan-India series is to cricket.”