WATCH: Iftikhar Ahmed's shirtless training draws criticism

KARACHI: Pakistani all-rounder Iftikhar Ahmed has stirred controversy on social media after posting a video of himself practicing batting without a shirt on Thursday. 

The video, shared on his official Facebook account, quickly went viral and drew a wave of criticism from fans and followers.

Iftikhar, who has represented Pakistan in four Tests, 28 ODIs and 66 T20 Internationals, has scored a total of 1,673 runs and taken 25 wickets across all formats. 

He shared the video with a caption stating that he was preparing for the upcoming Guyana Global T20 League.

However, rather than praise, the veteran cricketer was met with backlash in the comments section, where many users expressed disappointment over what they perceived as unprofessional behavior.

A user named Ubaid Khan wrote, "Being a national team player participating in a practice session without a shirt is just disgusting. Some people may admire you as a player, so think about the youth and Pakistani society."

Another user, Asad Sandhu, criticised Iftikhar’s batting skills, stating, "He can't even play a decent shot — that's always been his weakness."

Muhammad Bilal mocked the video, saying, "The cricket world is not ready for this wild talent." Another user suggested that the video was a deliberate attempt to gain attention.

Muhammad Junaid expressed frustration, commenting, "Chacha , you completely failed when we needed runs against India, and now you’re hitting sixes without a shirt. Shirt on or off, we don’t need this anymore."

Nadeem Malik sarcastically remarked, "In search of gold, we’ve lost everything," while Tasawur Qureshi wrote, "The standard of our international players has been exposed."

Another user, Muhammad Mehdi Zulfiqar, commented, "It’s disappointing to see an international player sharing shirtless videos publicly. It’s no surprise our cricket continues to struggle."