Choose the correct narration:

"How is your father?", asked my friend.

The Rules of Reported Speech When you change a direct question into reported (indirect) speech, two major things happen: Tense Shift (Back shifting): Since the reporting verb ("asked") is in the past tense, the verb inside the quote must move one step into the past. Direct: "is" (Present) $\ right arrow$ Indirect: "was" (Past).Word Order Change: In a direct question, the verb comes before the subject (is your father). In reported speech, the sentence becomes a statement, so the subject comes before the verb (my father was).