Australia set a world record for the highest successful run-chase in Test cricket history during the Fourth Test of the Ashes series against England.

The Australia men's national cricket team represents Australia in international cricket. Along with England, it is the joint oldest team in Test cricket history, playing and winning the first ever Test match in 1877; the team also plays One-Day International and Twenty20 International cricket, participating in both the first ODI, against England in the 1970–71 season and the first T20I, against New Zealand in the 2004–05 season, winning both games. The team draws its players from teams playing in the Australian domestic competitions – the Sheffield Shield, the Australian domestic limited-overs cricket tournament and the Big Bash League. Australia are the current ICC Cricket World Cup champions. They are usually regarded as the most successful national team in the history of cricket.

Test cricket is a format of the sport of cricket, considered the game’s most prestigious and traditional form. Often referred to as the "ultimate test" of a cricketer's skill, endurance and temperament, it is a first-class format of international cricket where two teams in whites, each representing their country, compete over a match that can last up to five days. It consists of up to four innings, with a minimum of ninety overs scheduled to be bowled in six hours per day, making it the sport with the longest playing time except for some multi-stage cycling races. A team wins the match by outscoring the opposition with the bat and bowling them out with the ball, otherwise the match ends in a draw.

The Fourth Test of the 1948 Ashes series was one of five Tests in a cricket series between Australia and England. The match was played at Headingley Cricket Ground at Leeds from 22 to 27 July with a rest day on 25 July. Australia won the match by seven wickets to take an unassailable 3–0 series lead. In successfully chasing a target of 404, they set a new world record for the highest victorious runchase in Test history, a record lasting until 1976.