The Ranji Trophy, 1936-37 started with a better enthusiasm and interest among the Indian cricket lovers, especially the people from Bombay, as their team became champion in both the previous occasions. In the third edition of the Ranji Trophy, a number of 16 teams took part and the teams were Bengal, Bihar, Bombay, Central India, CP & Berar, Delhi, Gujarat, Hyderabad, Madras, Maharashtra, Mysore, Nawanagar, Rajputana, Southern Punjab, Sind, United Province and the Western India. This edition saw the entry of the new team Bihar and the first match of the tournament was played between the Rajputana and Central India teams. Held at Ajmer from 3-5 December, 1936, the match saw the Central India team winning by 125 runs.
In the second match of the tournament, the teams like Sind and Nawanagar met with each other at Ahmedabad from 4-6 December, 1936 and the Nawanagar team won the match by 252 runs. The third match saw a battle between the teams like Gujarat and Western India clashing with each other at Ahmedabad from 7-9 December, 1936, where the Western India team won by a huge margin of 266 runs. The teams of Madras and Mysore played against each other in the fourth match of the tournament at Chennai from 16-18 December, 1936 and the Madras team won the match by one of the biggest margins ever in the tournament, 379 runs. The next match was held between Bengal and Bihar at Calcutta from 19-20 December, 1936, where the Bengal team won by 8 wickets. In the sixth match of the Ranji Trophy, 1936-37, the Hyderabad and the Central Provinces and Berar teams clashed with each other at Secunderabad from 25-27 December, 1936. The Hyderabad team easily won the match by a margin of 8 wickets.
The seventh match of the Ranji Trophy, 1936-37 was held at Delhi from 6-7 January, 1937 and the teams like Delhi and United Provinces clashed with each other in the match. The match was won by the United Provinces with a margin of 3 wickets. In the eighth match, the two teams of Maharashtra and Western India played against each other at the Poona Club Ground from 8-10 January, 1937. The Western India team won the match by an innings and 22 runs. The next match was played between the teams of Bombay and Nawanagar at Pune from 11-13 January, 1937 and the Nawanagar team was declared as the winner of the drawn match, as it was leading Bombay in the first innings. The Nawanagar team was a part of the tenth match of Ranji Trophy, 1936-37, as well, as it played against the Western India side in this match. The match was played at the Poona Club Ground from 15-17 January, 1937 and Nawanagar once again won a drawn match for having a lead in the first innings. The match between Madras and Hyderabad was the eleventh match of the tournament and it was held at Chennai from 16-18 January, 1937. The Hyderabad team won the match by 213 runs.
The twelfth match of the tournament was held between the teams of Bengal and Central India at Calcutta from 23-25 January, 1937 and the winner of the match was the Bengal team that won by 8 wickets. The next match was played by the teams of Southern Punjab and United Provinces at Amritsar from 23-24 January, 1937 and the match was won by the United Provinces by 85 runs. The Bengal team played its Semi-Final match of the tournament against the Hyderabad team at Calcutta from 29-31 January 1937 and the Bengal team became successful to beat the Hyderabad team by 127 runs to enter the Final of the Ranji Trophy, 1936-37. The Bengal and Nawanagar team clashed in the Final of the tournament at Bombay from 6-10 February, 1937. The Nawanagar team played extremely well in the Final match and became the champion of the Ranji Trophy, 1936-37, after beating the Bengal team by a huge margin of 256 runs.