It is easy to point out at Steve Smith and call him the ‘Sensei,’ and Marnus Labuschagne his ‘Senpai.’ One grew up on the bay of Kogarah bay amidst the hush-hush of the residential Beverley Park, Australia while the other grew up around the ‘gold mines’ in Klerksdorp, South Africa. It was not until, by destiny, made his first appearance in the 2014-15 season when he came on as a substitute against India where the duo played together for the first time. There never was a time, when the two trained together till 2019 Ashes, despite Labuschagne’s debut in 2018. When the Queenslander made his debut, the New South Wales’ batsman was missing from the Australian setup following the 2018 disastrous tour of South Africa. 

“We thought he was going to be a part of the Scorchers this year but the reality was he didn’t have a contract in front of him and there was a better one (offer) that came along,” said Scorchers’ head coach Adam Voges. 

The move that mattered

After having a long conversation with Smith, Philippe switched his BBL franchise as the Sixers’ veteran took the youngster under his own wings. That was the better offer that Voges was referring to, the chance to play alongside Steve Smith, luxurious ever than before. “There’s no reason why Josh Philippe can’t play all three forms for Australia,” Smith told cricket.com.au. This was the young-boy who moved franchisee just to get an opportunity to play under him, to learn from him on unorthodoxy despite channelling his inner ‘Western Australian’ spirits. 

“He’s a really good young kid and loves learning and playing so it’s exciting, not only for WA cricket but hopefully Australian cricket in the future as well,” said Shaun Marsh in 2018 after watching the youngster closely at Western Australia. 

Interestingly, Tim Paine is set to step down from the Australian setup following this summer of cricket, which makes Philippe and Alex Carey as the front-runners for replacing the skipper. Philippe, 22, is considered as Australia’s future, and deservedly is a long-term bet for the position. While the Test format still looks a long way ahead for the youngster, his form in the limited-overs has certainly given Australia the ray of hope. 

Just when you thought that a youngster could not get any better at 21, there was a smiling Josh Philippe, who could assassinate any bowler just by showing his hind-side of the blade to the bowler before he takes them head-on. In 15 innings for the Sixers in a magenta jersey, his form was ‘red,’ signifying some of the league’s best shot-making; breathtaking. 304 runs at an average of 30.4 look normal in a T20 season, however, when you put age and time in context, it becomes ‘extra-special.’ 

The final nail in the Labuschagne-Smith coffin:

While his average has dropped a bit low this season, he continues to impress one and all starting with his former side Perth Scorchers. “He’s got all the tools there, it’s just about using them at the right times. He plays fast bowling really well, we’ve seen him play spin really well with Rashid Khan (earlier this summer). The more he plays and is exposed to pressure situations the more he will improve,” added Smith. 

With the T20 World Cup right around the corner, rising stock and consistency alongside the backing from Steve Smith, Josh Philippe is once again amongst ‘The Conversation.’ By that, he is making all the right noise putting his name out of the park as he does a leather in a Big Bash encounter. And with Smith back into the playing XI for the Sixers, the circle comes to a complete end. So, Steve Smith’s protege is Marnus Labuschagne Josh Philippe.