Convert the following direct speech sentence into indirect speech: "I am off to the games. Where are you going?"

Introduction / Context:
This question tests your understanding of changing direct speech to indirect or reported speech. The original direct speech is I am off to the games. Where are you going. When converting to indirect speech, you must adjust pronouns, tenses, and the question structure correctly, while preserving the original meaning and the sequence of events.

Given Data / Assumptions:

• Direct speech: I am off to the games. Where are you going.
• Reporting verb: said.
• The speaker is he, and the listener is I in the reported version.
• We are narrating the speech after it has been spoken, so tense usually shifts back.
• The second sentence is a question, but in indirect speech it should become an embedded question.

Concept / Approach:
In indirect speech, present continuous tense in the original often changes to past continuous when the reporting verb is in the past. Personal pronouns change according to the point of view of the reporter. Also, a direct question is converted into a reported clause beginning with where, and the word order changes to subject plus verb, without a question mark. The conjunction that may be used after said to introduce the first part of the report.

Step-by-Step Solution:
Step 1: Convert I am off to the games with past tense shift and pronoun change: He said that he was off to the games.Step 2: Convert the question Where are you going into an indirect question: where I was going.Step 3: Join the two parts logically, using and or and wanted to know to show the link.Step 4: Ensure the word order in the reported question is subject before verb: I was going, not was I going.Step 5: Compare all given options and select the one that matches these rules exactly.

Verification / Alternative check:
Option D reads: He said that he was off to the games and wanted to know where I was going. This sentence uses past continuous was off and was going, has the correct pronoun changes, and uses an embedded question with normal word order. It also smoothly connects the statement and the question using wanted to know, which is typical in reported questions. No other option satisfies all of these requirements simultaneously.

Why Other Options Are Wrong:

• He said he would be off to the games and asked where I was going: Would be suggests a future in the past and does not match the original simple present continuous I am off.
• He said he was going off to the games and asked me where was I going: The phrase where was I going keeps the direct question word order, which is wrong in indirect speech.
• He said he is going off to the games and asked me where I was planning to go: Is going keeps present tense despite past reporting verb and changes the meaning by adding planning.
• He said that he had been off to the games and wanted to know where I had gone: Had been and had gone shift the action too far back in time and alter the immediate, ongoing sense of the original statements.

Common Pitfalls:
Candidates often forget to change the word order in reported questions and leave the auxiliary before the subject. Another frequent error is inconsistent tense shifting, where only part of the reported speech is shifted to the past. Always apply the rules systematically: adjust tenses for backshift when necessary, change pronouns, and convert questions into reported clauses with normal statement word order.

Final Answer:
The correct indirect speech form is He said that he was off to the games and wanted to know where I was going.