Attempted murder charge after cops attack

A knife-wielding man who allegedly ambushed two police officers outside a Sydney police station in the early hours of the morning has been charged with attempted murder.

The 28-year-old local man was allegedly captured on CCTV waiting outside the Eastwood police station at 3am on Thursday when two officers returned from their duties.

The man, who is known to police, lunged at the pair with a 20-centimetre "large carving knife" multiple times as they neared the top of the station's staircase, Acting Assistant Commissioner Brett McFadden said on Thursday.

Police were able to deflect the attack before the 28-year-old fled.

Six officers, including the pair who repelled the attack, chased the man into the dark.

He was still armed when the officers tasered and subdued him nearby.

He was charged with attempted murder.

"The officers are distressed by the incident but I have to commend their resilience and their tenacity - not only in responding to the threat - but then giving chase into the darkness after a person armed with what can only be described as a large carving knife," Mr McFadden told reporters in Sydney.

Mr McFadden said a range of agencies are working together to establish the man's motivation.

He would not detail why the man was known to police or if he was on the fixated persons unit's radar.

"This is a threat police face each and every day they go to work," Mr McFadden said.

"Police and enforcement agencies around the world have become a target for people who seek to undertake acts of violence randomly and unprovoked."

The man is set to face Burwood Local Court on Thursday afternoon.