It was drizzling on-and-off at the SCG on the first day of the Sydney Ashes Test, and while the second day's play has been relatively unimpeded by rain so far, it won't surprise Australians that rain is again quite likely to interrupt a Sydney Test at some point in the coming days.

This might surprise UK cricket fans, but "sunny" Sydney, with its beautiful beaches and sparkling harbour, is in fact the second-wettest Australian state capital city (after Darwin) and the wettest Australian city to host an Ashes Test.

In fact, Sydney's annual average rainfall is significantly higher than most UK cities too, including regular Ashes host cities Leeds (Headingley), Birmingham (Edgbaston) and London (The Oval and Lord's).

(By "wettest", we mean the total annual average rainfall, as opposed to the number of days on which a measurable amount of rain falls – in Australia this is classified as 0.2 mm or more.)

Image: Just another lovely day at the cricket in Manchester, um, we mean Sydney. Source: @p2pmarksmith via Instagram.

So how wet is Sydney exactly, and how does England compare?

• Sydney's average annual rainfall in the 30-year period from 1991-2020 was 1152.1 mm.
• We use the 30-year period so we can compare "apples with apples", so to speak, because the UK Met Office uses a rolling 30-year average with climate data for its weather stations.
• The regular Ashes Test host cities mentioned, including London, have rainfalls closer to about 700 mm, depending on which particular weather station you reference.
• It's also worth mentioning that Sydney's rainfall is reasonably evenly distributed throughout the year. So while the period from late winter to early summer (July through December) is slightly drier on average, heavy rain can and does fall regularly in any month.

Rain delays in a Sydney test #Ashes pic.twitter.com/IqJQcoqapZ

— Matt (@Mattys123) January 5, 2022

Manchester: the one English city that rivals Sydney

While Manchester has a reputation for being gloomy and wet, and while Sydney, as mentioned, is often associated with sun, the truth is that the two cities are almost level in terms of their annual average rainfall.

• Rochdale, a climate monitoring station located not far from Manchester's Old Trafford cricket ground, has an average annual rainfall of 1197.2 mm.
• That's not much more than Sydney's annual average of 1152.1 mm.

So enjoy today's play while it lasts, cricket fans. The sad reality is that Sydney is likely to turn all Manchester any day now – at least in terms of weather.

And if you want the latest Sydney forecast for the next few days, it's here. In a nutshell, it's not too bad, though showers are possible on each of the next four days, perhaps most likely on Saturday with the chance of storms.