Despite being cleared of affray, the cricketer’s night out may haunt him for years to come

It was supposed to have been a fun evening out for members of the England cricket team after a victory over the West Indies. But for Ben Stokes, a bout of violence at the end of the night, which left two men unconscious and at least one onlooker fearing for their safety, could yet prove damaging to a glittering career.

Although he was found not guilty of affray, the all-rounder faces an inquiry by a disciplinary commission of the England and Wales cricket board, which could lead to him being banned from playing for a period of time.

Ben Stokes rejoins England squad after being cleared of affray Read more

In the opening remarks of a seven-day trial, the judge noted disappointment that three men of “promise” found themselves facing a criminal trial. That was true particularly of Stokes, who could have been playing for England in the second Test of a series against India at Lord’s.

Instead he spent more than 30 hours in the dock at Bristol crown court, glum- faced behind perspex glass, shadowed by a security guardand forced to relive that fateful night in painstaking detail. The entire incident on a rainy evening in Bristol last September lasted a matter of minutes but may haunt him for years to come.

CCTV footage showed him remonstrating with a doorman and stumbling through the streets of Bristol city centre in the early hours. The prosecution attempted to paint the picture of an arrogant athlete of wealth and privilege.

Stokes’ closest allies, including his wife, Clare Ratcliffe, and agent, Neil Fairbrother, were a constant presence in the front row of the observers’ box. During the court case they must have wished he had gone home earlier in the evening.

There were numerous opportunities for Stokes to call it a night and head back to the five-star hotel where the team were staying on the evening of 24 September last year. But the 27-year-old stayed out drinking in Bristol with his teammate Alex Hales.

At 10pm Stokes, together with Hales and fellow England players Jonny Bairstow, Jake Ball and Liam Plunkett, travelled from the team hotel to Mbargo nightclub in the Clifton triangle area of the city. They were told to come back later as it was not open yet, and they returned at 11.30pm. “On their return they were good as gold, all polite, all happy,” said Andrew Cunningham, the nightclub door supervisor.

But later in the evening Stokes became embroiled in a fight with Ryan Hale and Ryan Ali, childhood friends out to celebrate a job promotion. During the course of the fight both Hale and Ali were knocked unconscious and Ali, a former bouncer, sustained a fractured eye socket.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest Ben Stokes (right) could play in Saturday’s third Test against India Photograph: Stu Forster/Getty Images

Halfway through the trial, Stokes’s legal team attempted to have the case against him dropped, but this was refused by the judge, it can now be reported.

The charge of affray is partly defined as an action that would “cause a person of reasonable firmness” to fear for their safety. The cricketer’s barrister, Gordon Cole QC, made the submission after the prosecution’s case against Stokes, Ali and Hale concluded last week. The judge Peter Blair QC, the recorder of Bristol, ruled that there was a case to answer for Stokes and Ali, but directed the jury of six men and six women to acquit Hale as there was insufficient evidence against him.

During submissions, lawyers argued that Stokes did not commit affray. Cole referred to evidence from an off-duty police officer, Mark Spure, who intervened in the fight. “We have had the evidence of Mark Spure that he put himself into the middle of the incident,” Cole said. “He has never said in his evidence that any of the violence was directed towards him; neither did he say that there were any threats directed towards him. Basically, he went to break up what was going on.”

Cole said two passersby could be seen on the road and they continued looking for a taxi, rather than being “perturbed” by what was happening. “Our submission is, however unattractive, it is a fight rather than an offence exhibiting the demonstration of affray,” he told the judge. “We don’t accept there is unlawful violence.” But the judge rejected the argument and the trial continued.

In the cricketing world, Stokes is known to be passionate, and in the past he has allowed himself to be governed by his emotions. A fiery disposition often works to his advantage on the cricket field but on occasion it has left the people around him, particularly those charged with managing his talent, exasperated. In 2014 he was picked for a tour of the Caribbean and was dismissed without scoring a run in the final match. He returned to the dressing room and punched a locker in frustration, breaking his right wrist in the process.

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Little more than a year before the locker incident he was sent home from a Lions tour of Australia for unprofessional conduct after a night out in Melbourne when he returned to the team hotel at 5.30am. He was given a written warning for “contravening conduct obligations” but broke the rules again by going on another night out.

Andy Flower, his coach at the time and a multiple Ashes winner, told him: “You don’t want to play for England. You just want to piss it up the wall with your mates and have a good time.”

After this, Stokes was determined to modify his behaviour off the cricket field. He will be required to do the same once more if he is to realise his full potential as a sportsman.