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A cricketer accused of raping a woman in his teammate's bed broke down in tears as he told a court she had "actively engaged" in consensual sex.

Ex-Worcestershire star Alex Hepburn denies attacking the alleged victim after she had sex with England Lions batsman Joe Clarke following a night out in April 2017.

Jurors have heard the woman - who cannot be named - believed she was still in bed with Mr Clarke, who had left the room to be sick, but woke to find Hepburn performing a sex act on her.

Giving evidence at Worcester Crown Court, Hepburn broke down three times as he insisted the alleged victim knew she was sleeping with him rather than his friend.

The 23-year-old player - who denies two counts of rape - told the jury he entered Mr Clarke's room at their flat, after seeing him leaning against a wall in the bathroom, because he had previously arranged to sleep in his teammate's bed.

Describing himself as drunk at the time of the alleged offence, Hepburn said: "After I had got myself into bed, that's when I first realised that there was a woman in the bed.

"The lighting was dim. You couldn't make out the door on the other side of the room but you could see what was in front of you and around.

"She rolled over towards me. She kissed me."

Asked by defence barrister Michelle Heeley QC whether the woman's eyes were open or closed, Hepburn replied: "They were open. Her eyes were open before she kissed me."

He told the court he had recognised the woman before they kissed, adding: "We moved around as you normally would if you are interacting and having sex with a female.

"She was enjoying it. She was actively engaged with me."

The court heard that the woman pushed Hepburn off and asked him what he was doing, leaving him "shocked and confused".

He said: "She asked me where Joe was and I replied that he was in the bathroom. I was under the impression that what we had been doing was absolutely normal."

Jurors have heard claims that both Hepburn and Mr Clarke were involved in a sexual conquest "game" - after setting up a "stat chat" page on WhatsApp to keep a record of sex with women.

Hepburn - who denies two counts of rape - told the court he was "completely embarrassed" at comments he had made.

"My family has had to see them," he said.

"It was meant to be nothing more than immature chat between a group of friends. No thought went into it."

The court heard Hepburn - who was born in Western Australia and moved to England in 2013 to pursue his cricket career - is no longer employed by Worcestershire because his contract had not been renewed.

The trial continues.