Perth, May 3 -- The Indian women's hockey team put up a spirited fight but fell short following a 2-3 defeat to Australia in the fourth game of their Australia tour, at the Perth Hockey Stadium on Saturday.

Navneet Kaur (35') and Lalremsiami (59') were the scorers for India, while Australia struck through Grace Stewart (2'), Jade Smith (36'), and Greta Hayes (42') in the nail-biting encounter.

Australia drew first blood to take a 1-0 lead in the first quarter. The breakthrough came as early as the second minute when Grace Stewart found the back of the net. India worked hard to level the score in the remainder of the quarter but could not find the equaliser.

In the second quarter, India successfully defended an early penalty corner and ...