The 29-year-old had not just won her first Grand Slam title but also became the first Italian woman to win a Slam after a 6-4, 7-6 victory over Sam Stosur.
In fact, Italy had not had a Grand Slam winner since Adriano Panatta won the French Open 34 years ago.
This pressure of a desperate nation did not hinder but instead inspired Schiavoni who produced tennis of the highest quality.
She came in as the underdog but she showed that she deserved to become a Grand Slam holder.
Her grace, style and attacking play was worthy of any champion, producing a magnificent display against the Australian.
The seventeenth seed use of the court was a demonstration of how to play on a clay court as she tore through her opponent with an abundance of angled shots to open up the court.
Volleying was also an aspect of her game, which surprisingly was used to much affect on the clay and showed signs that she could also be a threat on the grass.
Despite winning in Barcelona, the Italian was not expected to get anyway near the final due to her inconsistent Grand Slam record.
Even coming into the final, following victories over Elena Dementieva and Caroline Wozniaki, Stosur considered as the clear favourite.
But what Schiavoni showed during this championship was, as printed on her teams shirts, that ‘nothing is impossible’.
Her age, her ranking, her previous record had no bearing on the Italian who demonstrated tremendous fight to capture her first Slam and become the second oldest first time winner since Britain’s Ann Jones in 1969.
Her age, her ranking, her previous record had no bearing on the Italian who demonstrated tremendous fight to capture her first Slam and become the second oldest first time winner since Britain’s Ann Jones in 1969.
She said it was a ‘dream’ but now with a ranking inside the top ten and with a Grand Slam to her name, the Italian must now face the reality of a now expecting nation.
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