"He's a star, not too long before he's in the short-form for Australia"- Sydney Sixers skipper Daniel Hughes on Josh Philippe 

Sydney Sixers captain Daniel Hughes believes Josh Philippe is a star in the making and feels the wicketkeeper-batsman will soon play for Australia in the short-form.

Philippe is currently the second-highest run-scorer in the ongoing BBL season, with 261 runs to his name.

On the back of some influential knocks by Josh Philippe, defending champions Sydney Sixers are currently on top of the BBL points table.

And Daniel Hughes talked about how the Sixers have given Philippe the freedom to go out and express himself in the middle.

"He's(Josh Philippe) a star, and I don't think it'll be too long before he's in the short-form for Australia. He's just going to keep getting better and better … he'll play for Australia for a few years, I'd say. We just tell him to play with freedom; be fearless, play what you see, and if you feel like you can take a bowler down, take them down." said Hughes.

Josh Philippe has averaged 37.29 this season and has scored at a rapid strike rate of 144.20.

The opener's recent performances are not just a flash in the pan as he was the third-highest run-scorer in last season's BBL, with the Sydney Sixers winning their second title.

The @SixersBBL get their season underway tonight with plenty of eyes on Josh Philippe after last summer's breakout performance #BBL09 pic.twitter.com/h3nisnkz1j

— cricket.com.au (@cricketcomau) December 18, 2019

Where can Josh Philippe improve?

One criticism which has come Josh Philippe's way is that he hasn't managed to convert his impressive starts into big scores.

The opener has managed just one big score of 95 this season. In the last three games, he has got out on 48, 48 and 41 respectively.

Josh Philippe's rapid 41 wins him the player of the match!@erinvholland | #BBL10 pic.twitter.com/1VQCAGgPm2

— 7Cricket (@7Cricket) January 3, 2021

Daniel Hughes is of the opinion that Josh Philippe is still learning the art of building an innings and feels the 23-year-old doesn't need to attack every delivery.

It's just playing the right shots when he needs to, keeping a cool head, staying calm, He doesn't need to hit the ball to the fence every ball, and you can sort of see that with the way he's batting – he's still learning, still learning how to build an innings and once he gets that, he'll go to the next level." added Hughes

Sydney Sixers still look like the team to beat this season as they are two points ahead of their nearest rivals, Sydney Thunder, on the BBL points table. The Sixers will take on the Perth Scorchers tomorrow.