Sega Superstars Tennis

Every gamer has a deep dark secret about themselves. Mine is that I'm not a fan of Mario Tennis and its sequel. Both games just weren't all that interesting to me. I mean it was good with friends, but it just couldn't top Mario Party or Super Smash Brothers in that aspect. Even when compared to other Mario sports titles, Mario Tennis is just "eh its alright". Mario Kart was much better, though. Overall, Mario Tennis is just there. So why on earth did Sega think it was a good idea to put their characters in that sort of setting? Why give Sonic, Shadow, Nights and other characters they created... tennis rackets? Honestly, I was expecting them just flat out rip off Super Smash Brothers, but unfortunately, Sega didn't give a shit about anybody except the guys that give them money like the money hungry Jews they are, or they would've done a Super Smash Brothers sort of game instead! I know game developing and publishing is a business and whatnot, but seriously, what were they thinking...