Select the correct indirect form of the given sentence.
Anna said, “What are you talking about, Mark? How can you leave us alone at such a difficult time?”

Correct option is A

The correct indirect speech is (a).
Direct speech refers to the exact words spoken by a person, written within quotation marks. It reproduces the speaker’s original words as they were spoken.
Indirect speech (or reported speech) refers to reporting what someone said without quoting them exactly. The words are often paraphrased and adjusted to fit grammatical structure, especially in tense, pronouns, time expressions, etc.
Explanation:
We are converting interrogative and exclamatory statements into reported speech. The reporting verb “said” changes to “asked” or “exclaimed” depending on emotion.
Key Changes:
· “are you talking” → “he was talking”
· “can you leave” → “he could leave”
· Pronouns change accordingly: "you" → "he", "us" → "them"
Tense Rule:
· Present → Past
· “can” → “could”
Correct Transformation:
Anna was surprised and asked Mark what he was talking about.
She further asked him how he could leave them alone at such a difficult time.
Incorrect options:
· (b) “asking” instead of “asked” = wrong
· (c) “is talking” = tense error; “could he” = wrong order
· (d) “in surprise” is awkward; “asking” again is present continuous