World No. 5 Kei Nishikori was handed the fifth seed for Wimbledon on Wednesday, making him the highest seeded Japanese player in the grass court major during the Open era.
Nishikori, the 10th seed last year, surpassed the mark of Kimiko Date-Krumm, who was the sixth seed at the All England Club in 1994 and 1995. In his grass court warmup in Halle, Germany, Nishikori reached the semifinals of the Gerry Weber Open before withdrawing due to pain in his left calf. His best result at Wimbledon came last year, when he reached the round of 16.
Having reached the quarterfinals at the French Open this year, Wimbledon remains the only major in which Nishikori has not gotten as far as the last eight.
The top men's seed is world No. 1 and defending champion Novak Djokovic, while seven-time champion Roger Federer is seeded second. Andy Murray, the 2013 champ, is the third seed, while French Open champion Stan Wawrinka is seeded fourth.
The draw will be held on Friday, with first-round action slated to begin on Monday.
Date-Krumm missed out on a place in the main draw after losing in the first round of qualifiers.
The 44-year-old, who also failed to qualify for the French Open, was beaten in straight sets 6-4, 7-6 (7-3) by 26-year-old Olga Govortsova of Belarus.
On a day of mixed fortunes for Japanese players, Nao Hibino beat compatriot Ayumi Morita 6-1, 7-5 and Eri Hozumi advanced to the next round with a 7-6 (7-5), 7-5 win over American Katerina Stewart.
But Misa Eguchi and Risa Ozaki were among a number of Japanese casualties to fall at the first qualifying hurdle.