The Darwin Squash Centre will stage the 2016 World International Doubles Squash Championships ©Squash Australia

Australia will play host to the returning World International Doubles Squash Championships in 2016, the World Squash Federation (WSF) has announced.

The competition, scheduled to take place from August 15 to 19, will be held at the Darwin Squash Centre.

Australia also staged the last event in Melbourne in 2006, where the host nation claimed the gold medal in the men’s and mixed doubles events and silver in the women’s tournament.

Stewart Boswell and Anthony Ricketts claimed the men’s title with victory over compatriots Dan Jenson and Joe Kneipp, who went on to secure mixed doubles gold with teammate Rachel Grinham.

New Zealand are the defending women’s champions after Shelley Kitchen and Tamsyn Leevey overcame the challenge of Robyn Cooper and Sarah Fitz-Gerald in the final.

“Squash Australia are delighted to be welcoming the World Doubles Championships to Darwin," Squash Australia chief executive Richard Vaughan said. 

"Australia has a proud doubles history and once again we will be hoping to challenge for medals.

“The new Darwin Squash Centre will be a great venue, close to the airport and as Darwin is only a few hours flight from Asian hub Singapore we would be hopeful of getting many nations competing.”

Rachel Grinham won mixed doubles gold at the last World International Doubles Squash Championships with Joe Kneipp
Australia's Rachel Grinham won mixed doubles gold at the last World International Doubles Squash Championships with Joe Kneipp in Melbourne in 2006 ©Getty Images

The event in Darwin will be the fourth World International Doubles Squash Championships to take place following the competition in Melbourne nine years ago.

Chennai, India hosted the Championships in 2004, which came after the inaugural edition was staged in Hong Kong in 1997.

The event had been due to be held in 2014 but was cancelled after original Malaysian host Penang withdrew because they claimed tournament would take part too close to the Asian Team Championships in Hong Kong. 

A late attempt to move the tournament to Glasgow failed. 

The WSF believe next year’s competition will provide ideal preparation for the 2018 Commonwealth Games in Gold Coast, due to be held from April 4 to 15, where Australia will be bidding to defend the men’s and mixed doubles crowns they earned at Glasgow 2014.

Cameron Pilley and David Palmer reigned supreme in the men’s doubles tournament, ousting Nick Matthew and Adrian Grant of England in the final, while the mixed doubles title was won by Palmer and Grinham.

They also triumphed over an English duo as they beat Alison Waters and Peter Barker in the gold medal match.