Somerset's Champions League hopes look slim after they lost to Diamond Eagles by five wickets at Hyderabad today.

The Sabres set the South Africans a modest 133 to win from their 20 overs and it was never going to be enough.

Somerset were indebted to a career best 57 from Wes Durston, playing his first game of the tournament in the absence of the departed Marcus Trescothick, just to give them a remotely competitive score.

The Sabres must now beat New South Wales on Sunday to stand any chance of making the semi-finals.

When the Eagles batted, Rile Rossouw threatened to take the game away from Somerset immediately but the left-handed opener tried one shot too many off the last ball of the second over and skied Charl Willoughby to Alfonso Thomas at mid-on for 13.

And Willougby was handed another wicket in the sixth over when Adrian McLaren flicked him high to DUrston at short fine-leg for 13.

Max Waller then claimed the desperately needed wicket of Boeta Dippenaar when he had him caught at long-off by the safe hands of Durston for 18.

But from 77-3 a steady stand of 49 between van Wyk (47) and Ryan Bailey took the Eagles to the brink before the former tried to pull Thomas and skied to short fine-leg, where wicketkeeper Craig Kieswetter ran around to take a good catch.

However, the Bloemfontain-based side eased home with eight balls to spare despite a further wicket for Thomas when he had Bailey caught in the gully for 29.

Earlier, after the Sabres had won the toss, Cornelius de Villiers rocked Somerset in the second over of the game when he had both Kieswetter and Arul Suppiah leg before wicket.

And the third wicket went down in the fourth over when Zander de Bruyn tried to smash de Villiers back over the bowler's head but could only sky to mid-off.

Two boundaries from James Hildreth looked to have steadied Somerset but Justin Langer then ran past off-spinner Thandi Tshabalala's first ball and was bowled for 12.

Pete Trego then fell victim to a remarkable, one-handed caught and bowled from Alan Kruger for six to reduce the Sabres to 52-5.

Hildreth survived a missed stumping chance on 17 by wicketkeeper Morne van Wyk off Tshabalala.

Durston struck three successive boundaries to help bring up the 100 and also survived a diving chance at short extra cover off Ryan McLaren.

Three more successive fours off the previously parsimonious de Villiers helped take Durston to a 26-ball fifty - the second fastest in the Champions League and his first ever in T20 cricket.

Durston finally went for 57 when he scooped a de Villiers slower ball to long-on to end a sixth-wicket stand of 77 from 53 balls.

Ben Phillips made a four-ball nought before he was brilliantly caught, one-handed, at short fine-leg.

Hildreth (31) then picked put long-on off Jandre Coetzee in the final over as Somerset totalled 132-8.

For more details see tomorrow's Evening Post or Western Daily Press.