England’s only warm-up match in preparation for the women’s Ashes was abandoned because of rain in Sydney.

After several rain delays, the match was reduced to 35 overs a side before the weather ended the Australian Governor General XI’s innings on 183-8 from 28.2 overs.

England were then set a revised target of 188 in 28 overs, but play did not resume at the North Sydney Oval.

However, captain Heather Knight said at the toss that she was more keen for her bowlers to get overs in their legs, and head coach Jon Lewis believes the team are ready regardless of the limited warm-up down under.

“We’d have liked to have played more cricket but it is what it is,” he said.

“The players are ready, they’ve played a lot of cricket in the last four or five months and they’ve come here and feel like they’ve hit the ground running so we feel like we’re in a pretty good space.”

The seamers struggled for consistency as openers Alyssa Healy and Georgia Voll added 91 in 11.2 overs, with 21-year-old Voll impressing with 57 from 42 balls.

The pair and Georgia Wareham were the only players in the XI who are also in Australia’s Ashes squad, with leg-spinning all-rounder Wareham only making three as England’s spinners fought back after the wayward start.

Sophie Ecclestone removed both openers on her way to figures of 3-27, and the middle order wobbled to 147-6 before a late flurry of boundaries from Rhys McKenna and Nicole Faltum helped start a recovery until the rain resumed.