Swiss · Prague, Czechoslovakia · Born 12 November 1964Jakob Hlasek is a Swiss former tennis player who reached a career-high singles ranking of World No. 7 and won the 1992 French Open men's doubles title, helping Switzerland to its first Davis Cup final that year.
At the 1988 Nabisco Masters, Jakob Hlasek went 3-0 in round-robin play — defeating Ivan Lendl, Tim Mayotte, and Andre Agassi in succession — to announce himself as one of the most dangerous big-tournament players on tour, a reputation he reinforced in 1992 by helping Switzerland reach its first-ever Davis Cup final. He helped Switzerland to the 1982 European Team Championships and became a fixture of the country's Davis Cup team from 1984. Hlasek's finest individual season came in 1988, when he climbed from 29th to 9th in the world rankings in a three-week stretch by winning at Wembley and Johannesburg, and finishing runner-up at Brussels, before qualifying for the year-end Nabisco Masters. There, he went 3-0 in round-robin play, defeating Ivan Lendl, Tim Mayotte, and Andre Agassi before losing to Boris Becker in the semifinal; across that year he also beat former World No. 1s Jimmy Connors and John McEnroe. He reached a career-high singles ranking of World No. 7 that season. Hlasek's greatest team success came in 1992, when he won the French Open men's doubles title alongside compatriot Marc Rosset, and helped Switzerland reach its first-ever Davis Cup final, where they were defeated by the United States, as well as winning the Hopman Cup that year. He also reached a career-high doubles ranking of World No. 4, winning 20 doubles titles in total. Hlasek retired in 1996 and later served as Switzerland's Davis Cup captain from 2000 to 2001.
Winning the 1992 French Open men's doubles title and helping Switzerland to its first Davis Cup final
How They Played
All-court player with a strong serve-and-volley game and excellent doubles instincts
Lasting Impact
A key figure in Switzerland's rise as a tennis nation in the early 1990s, alongside Marc Rosset
Career Honours
- French Open doubles champion (1992, with Marc Rosset)
- Career-high singles ranking of World No. 7
- Davis Cup runner-up with Switzerland (1992)
- Beat three former World No. 1 players in 1988 (Connors, McEnroe, Lendl)
Swiss Athletes