DIRECTOR of cricket Brian Rose said Somerset Sabres will not be fazed by taking on the best sides in the world when they compete in the Twenty20 Champions League.

The Sabres finished as runners-up to Sussex in the Twenty20 Cup after an exciting finals day at Edgbaston on Saturday, to qualify for October’s Champions League in India.

The competition features four groups of three, with the top two qualifying for the second phase.

Somerset will face IPL champions the Deccan Chargers – likely to include Australians Adam Gilchrist and Andrew Symonds – and West Indies winners Trinidad and Tobago in their group.

Rose said Somerset will not be intimidated by the standard of opposition they will face.

He said: “We are not frightened by the teams that we have been drawn to play against and not shy about going there because Twenty20 cricket is all about who rocks up on the day.

“We have seen the impact of Twenty20 around the world and a large amount of money is on offer to the winners, which puts the event in the same big league as golf and tennis in terms of financial gain.”

Reaching the Champions League, guarantees the club what is expected to be around a $500,000 participation fee, with additional prizemoney ranging from $100,000 to $2.4million for the winners.

All-rounder Pete Trego said: “To have qualified as one of the 12 best Twenty20 teams in the world is a phenomenal achievement and I am so proud to be a part of that.

“It is a great opportunity for the budding international players in our team to put their names forward and show that they can mix it with the best because there are going to be some serious cricketers playing in that tournament.”

Somerset have named an initial party of 20 players for the Champions League, which will be reduced to 15 in early September.

Full squad: Justin Langer, Marcus Trescothick, Zander de Bruyn, James Hildreth, Craig Kieswetter, Pete Trego, Arul Suppiah, Alfonso Thomas, Max Waller, Charl Willoughby, Wes Durston, Mark Turner, Omari Banks, Steffan Jones, Jos Buttler, Michael Munday, Adam Dibble, David Stiff, Robin Lett, Ben Phillips.