Select the option that expresses the given sentence in reported speech.
Koushik said to Tarun, “You are a good cricketer.”

Correct option is C

The correct reported speech of the given sentence is (c) Koushik told Tarun that he was a good cricketer.
Explanation:
· The reporting verb "said to" changes to "told" in indirect speech.
· The pronoun "you" changes according to the subject of the reported speech ("Tarun" → "he").
· The verb "are" (present tense) changes to "was" (past tense) as per the rule of sequence of tenses.
· The conjunction "that" is used to connect the clauses.
Grammatical rule used:
· Direct speech in the simple present tense changes to simple past in reported speech.
· "Said to" changes to "told" when followed by an object.
· Personal pronouns change accordingly.
Example:
· Direct: She said, “I am happy.”
· Indirect: She said that she was happy.
Why other options are incorrect:
· (a) Incorrect because "had been" (past perfect) is unnecessary here.
· (b) Incorrect because "told that" is grammatically incorrect; "told" must have an object.
· (d) Incorrect because "tells" keeps the sentence in the present, which is incorrect when reporting past speech.