Hilpert was born in India, to a Khasi Indian mother and German father.

His father worked as a diplomat, so Hilpert also lived in Indonesia, Sri Lanka and Sudan during his childhood.

Despite his mother being an Indian national, Hilpert wasn't eligible to represent the country of his birth in Davis Cup tennis as he only held a German passport.

[citation needed] Hilpert was a doubles quarter-finalist in the 1999 Majorca Open (with Vaughan Snyman) and at San Marino in 2000, partnering Jens Knippschild.

[2] His best singles performance was a second round appearance in 1997 at the Washington D.C. tournament, where he had a win over Reed Cordish.