Why did Mahatma Gandhi put himself down in the English team?
The clue for the answer is in the following sentence from the paragraph: "By that unforgettable signature as the seventeenth man of the MCC team, he showed ............he had nothing against the common man of England (which means the common people in Britain)". The word "he" refers to Gandhiji.
The English cricket team is usually made up of common people of Britain. Hence, by including himself among the English cricket team members, Gandhiji showed that he had nothing against the common people of Britain. It means, he had no objection to be listed as one among them. Hence, option C is correct.
Option A: The word, "British" means relating to Great Britain or United Kingdom. It is quite a broad term and could relate to the people or the language or the Government or anything related to Great Britain or United Kingdom. Gandhiji was against only the British Government. Hence, to mention that "he had nothing against British" is a very broad generalisation, which is incorrect.
Option B is incorrect because it is mentioned in the passage that he was prepared to fight the British Government for the independence of India. So, it is clear that he was against the British government. Hence, to say that "he had nothing against the British Government" (which means the opposite) is incorrect.
Option D is incorrect because option C is correct.