The South Zone of the Ranji Trophy, 1961-62 saw the participation from a number of 4 teams, including the likes of Hyderabad, Mysore, Kerala and Madras. The Andhra team did not play in this edition of the tournament and the other four teams tried their best to get a chance to compete in the knock out level of the tournament. The teams of Madras and Mysore eventually became successful to do so from the South Zone.
The first of the South Zone league matches in the Ranji Trophy, 1961-62 was played between the teams of Hyderabad and Mysore teams at Hyderabad from 25-27 August, 1961. The drawn match saw the Mysore and Hyderabad teams earning 6 and 3 points, respectively from it. In the second match of the South Zone, there was a clash between the teams of Madras and Kerala and the match was held at Salem from 26-28 August, 1961. The Madras team played extraordinarily in the match and clinched a huge victory of an innings and 45 runs to earn the entire 9 points from the match.
The teams of Madras and Hyderabad then clashed with each other in the third of the South Zone league matches in the Ranji Trophy, 1961-62. The match was held at Madras from 02-04 September, 1961 and it saw the Madras team winning comprehensively by a good margin of an innings and 65 runs. The Madras team also earned 8 valuable points from the match. The next match of the zone involved the teams of Kerala and Hyderabad and the match was held at Cannanore from 08-10 September, 1961. The match officials awarded both teams 2 points for the match, as it was drawn during its stipulated duration.
The fifth of the South Zone league matches in the Ranji Trophy, 1961-62 featured the two most powerful teams of the zone, Madras and Mysore and the match was held at Bangalore from 16-18 September, 1961. The drawn match saw the Madras team earning 5 points and Mysore team earning 3 points from it. The last match of the South Zone saw a clash between the teams of Mysore and Kerala at Mysore from 21-22 September, 1961. The Mysore team won the match by an innings and 92 runs to earn the full 9 points from it and also to secure its place in the knock out level of the tournament.