World cricket chiefs remain confident the game's standards will not be damaged if Australia beats the combined strengths of the Rest of the World in this year's Super Series.

With the world champions craving competition, particularly in the traditional Test arena, an Australian victory over the rest would confirm Ricky Ponting's side as one of the true greats.

However, it would also throw questions over the standard of the other nine Test nations and would be a potential black eye for the sport.

The series - comprising three one-day matches at Melbourne's Telstra Dome on October 5, 7 and 9 and a six-day Test, in Sydney starting October 14 - was launched on Wednesday and the selection panel for the Rest of the World side announced.

Indian great Sunil Gavaskar will head the panel and with colleagues Sir Richard Hadlee, Clive Lloyd, Jonty Rhodes, Mike Atherton and Aravinda de Silva, in April will select preliminary 30-man squads for both the one-day matches and the Test.

The International Cricket Council (ICC) has organised the event to showcase the game's best talent, and believes the concept - not seen since Australia played a Rest of the World side in 1971-72 - will excite the game's millions of followers.

The ICC believes an Australian victory would be more of a tribute to Ponting's side than a blight on the world game.

"If Australia beats the Rest of the World, I think that will be very good recognition of the standards of this Australian team," ICC chief executive Malcolm Speed said.

"One of the things we haven't done well in the past is recognise our champion players and our champion teams, so that's the ultimate challenge for a champion team, to beat the Rest of the World."

ICC president Ehsan Mani said Australia's current side was not the first to dominate the sport, and pointed to how the West Indian teams of the 1970s and `80s lifted standards across the globe.

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