England cricketer Ben Stokes mocked a gay man and threw a cigarette butt at his head before knocking two men unconscious in a fight outside a nightclub in Bristol, a jury has heard.
The 27-year-old all-rounder is accused of punching Ryan Hale, 27, to the ground and then allegedly knocking out Ryan Ali, 28, a short time later.
Stokes, Hale and Ali are jointly accused of affray – a charge they all deny – and are on trial at Bristol Crown Court.
The men are jointly charged over a fracas in the Clifton Triangle area of Bristol on 25 September last year – several hours after England had played a one-day international against the West Indies in the city.
On the first day of the trial, prosecutor Nicholas Corsellis said an altercation took place shortly after 2am when the three defendants had all left the Mbargo nightclub having all been drinking.
He told the jury of six men and six women: "In the early hours of the morning of Monday September 25 2017, a fight took place between these three defendants in central Bristol in the area known as the Clifton Triangle.
"They were, the Crown say, all involved in threatening and/or using unlawful violence towards each other. Some participated to a greater extent than others as you will see."
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He said he remembered the two gay men in Mbargo's and that there was "banter" between them afterwards.
"He then saw a tall blond guy coming towards him 'very aggressively' and crossing the road towards him," Mr Corsellis said.
"There was then an 'altercation' between them. He had his palms open and was saying that he did not want any trouble. He thought that he calmed down the blond hair guy, then he saw his friend Ryan unconscious on his back.
"The male had gone towards Ryan 'aggressively while he was unconscious on the floor'. He tried to restrain Mr Stokes, trying to put him in a headlock. He does not remember anything else other than waking up in the gutter on his back.
"He denied making any homophobic comments to the men. He accepted carrying a bottle. He may have hidden it in his jacket when he left the club. He denied trying to attack anything with the bottle.
"He was saying 'Get back, move away' because he felt threatened. Ben Stokes came towards him aggressively. He was angry and charging towards him. He cannot recall hitting anyone with the bottle but from the video he can see that he hit someone's arm."
Jurors were told the club Mbargo, as part of its licencing conditions, is unable to allow entry to additional customers after 2am and so the two cricketers were turned away after they turned up after that time.
Stokes offered door supervisor Andrew Cunningham £60, then £300, for entry, and became abusive when this was refused, the court heard.
Two gay men, Kai Barry and William O'Connor, emerged from the nightclub and began talking to Stokes and Mr Hales.
Mr Corsellis told the jury: "Mr Cunningham observed Mr Stokes' behaviour towards them.
"He noted that he was mimicking their voices and mannerisms in what he described as 'a derogatory way', thereby making fun of their camp behaviour.
"The CCTV footage, which does not have audio, suggests that sort of behaviour did take place, with Mr Stokes copying hand gestures made by the men.
"The discussion and behaviour continued but took a turn that caused Mr Cunningham some concern.
"Mr Stokes, notwithstanding his standing or occupation as a professional athlete, also smokes. He was smoking on the evening in question.
"Mr Cunningham had cause to be concerned when he saw Mr Stokes take either the unlit butt or the butt of his cigarette and flick it onto Mr O'Connor's head.
"Mr Cunningham said to Mr Stokes, 'if you want to start on anyone, start on me'."
The court heard Mr Hales had not seen Stokes flick the cigarette butt and asked Mr Cunningham why he was annoyed.
"When told by him that Stokes had flicked a cigarette at one of the men, he said: 'Stokesy - don't do that'," Mr Corsellis said.
CCTV footage shows Ali and Hale leaving the nightclub at 2.23am and engaging in conversation with Mr Barry and Mr O'Connor.
The group of four men then walked away from the club and towards Queens Road, with Stokes and Mr Hales remaining at Mbargo.
Stokes shook hands with one of the bouncers and tried to shake hands with Mr Cunningham, but this was refused.
Mr Corsellis said this "seemed to enrage Mr Stokes" and he left the nightclub angry after spending 18 minutes trying to get inside.
"Mr Stokes's behaviour outside the nightclub sets an important tone for what happened that night," he told the jury.
"He was clearly frustrated and annoyed. He took to acting in a provocative and offensive way towards Mr Cunningham and then Mr Barry and Mr O'Connor."
CCTV footage shows Stokes and Mr Hales catch up with Ali, Hale, Mr Barry and Mr O'Connor as they stand on Queens Road.
Mr Corsellis said it showed Mr Barry touching Ali inappropriately to his groin area, before returning and trying to take his arm.
"Mr Ali responds by pushing Mr Barry away, albeit with no significant force," he told the jury.
He told jurors it would be an issue for them to decide whether the interaction between the men had simply been "banter or something more sinister".
Only the defendants know precisely how the fight started and it could have "stopped very quickly", he claimed.
He missed the Ashes after being suspended from playing for England last year. Without him, England lost the series against Australia 4-0.
He has since played in the Test series against New Zealand, Pakistan and last week starred as England beat India at Edgbaston.
Ben Stokes arriving at court this morning
Stokes arrived at court this morning wearing a blue suit and red tie and walked straight into the building flanked by the media.
The charge he faces states that their "conduct was such as would cause a person of reasonable firmness present at the scene to fear for his personal safety", contrary to section 3(1) and (7) of the Public Order Act 1986.
A 27-year-old man allegedly suffered a fractured eye socket in the incident, at which fellow England cricketer Alex Hales was also present.
The trial before Judge Peter Blair QC, the Recorder of Bristol, is expected to last between five and seven days in courtroom one.
Stokes, of Stockton Road, Castle Eden, Durham; Ali, of Forest Road, Bristol; and Hale, of Burghill Road, Westbury-on-Trym, Bristol, are on bail.
