Afridi, who played in 153 Test matches as a professional, announced his diagnosis on Twitter.

Pakistan's chief selector and head coach, Misbah-ul-Haq, extended his well wishes, but also suggested he had contracted the virus while conducting charity work.

Afridi, a big-hitting all-rounder known as "Boom Boom", was reportedly working in the Balochistan region of the country during the lockdown period to help those in remote areas.

"My prayers are with him," Misbah said.

"I think he was doing a lot of work in the area of Balochistan and the northern areas just to help the people.

"Throughout the COVID situation he was helping the poor and doing a very good job."

As part of his charity, the Shahid Afridi Foundation, the 45-year-old has travelled the country during the pandemic, providing healthcare and education for the poor.

Most of his relief work recently has centered around the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa region, and he reportedly came into close contact with many of his beneficiaries. 

Afridi recently bought the cricket bat of Bangladesh player Mushfiqur Rahim, to raise money for COVID-19 relief after false bids threatened its sale at auction.

Afridi is the third Pakistani cricketer to contract the virus and the second international player after Taufeed Umar.

Zafar Sarfraz, a former first-class cricketer, died of COVID-19 at the age of 50.

To date, there have been more than 144,000 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Pakistan, resulting in the deaths of more than 2,700 people.