India to play hockey Test series in Australia

Melbourne: World Champions Australia will host India for a four-match hockey Test series in Perth in November.

The Nov 1-9 series will be part of preparations for the Champions Trophy to be played in Bhubaneswar in December.

"We've been keen to bring India back to Australia for some time. As we saw in Glasgow, matches between the Kookaburras and India are always hotly contested and with the Champions Trophy around the corner, these Tests will be no different," Hockey Australia (HA) chief executive Cam Vale said Wednesday.

On the possibility of the series becoming an annual fixture, Vale said: "We've had good discussions with Hockey India (HI) about making this a regular series and building an event around it that fans can really enjoy. Those conversations are ongoing and we're looking forward to continuing them when India are here in November."

All four matches will take place at the Perth Hockey Stadium Nov 4, 5, 8 and 9. India will warm up for the series with a match against Australia A Nov 1.