'He was easy to approach,' Australia's Josh Philippe speaks about 'humble' Virat Kohli

Josh Philippe, who is yet to make his Australia debut, is already a star in the Big Bash League (BBL), playing for the Sydney Sixers. While Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) released as many as 10 players, Philippe was retained by Virat Kohli and Co for the upcoming edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL).

Philippe, whose dream is to don the Baggy Green some day, is determined to put himself along with Alex Carrey and Josh Inglis in the race to grab the wicketkeeper-batsman's place in the Australian squad as 36-year-old Tim Paine's days in the team are anyway numbered.

Ahead of the IPL 2020, Philippe had earned his maiden Australia limited-overs call for the England tour. But he did not get a game.

"The dream is to play Test cricket. This year was a fascinating year. I had the chance to go to the IPL, and because it was postponed, I missed Shield cricket [with Western Australia] as a result. I still have a lot to learn with four-day cricket. But if you're consistently playing and doing well you never know what happens. I'm young and hopefully, I've got a long career ahead of me.

I want to play for Australia and potentially be good enough to play all formats. They're my goals. Until that is completely shut down, I won't just think about the T20 circuit," Philippe told the Sydney Morning Herald.

Even though Philippe scored 78 runs in five matches for RCB last season, the wicketkeeper-batsman is considered among the promising players in Australia. At the Sydney Sixers camp, Phillippe has earned the name of baby-faced Steve Smith that has even been recognised by his RCB teammate AB de Villiers.

Speaking about his experience with RCB and Kohli, Phillippe said, "The camera never leaves him. It's amazing to see his intensity on the field, but then away from the field see how normal and humble he is. He was so easy to approach."

Having played 19 First-Class matches for Western Australia, the 23-year-old Philippe has scored 988 runs in 36 innings at an average of 28.22. He has a better record in the T20s with 1,317 runs in 49 T20s at an average of 32.92.